Love or loathe it, Valery Afanassiev’s remarkable recording
from the 1986 Lockenhaus Festival of Schubert’s Sonata
D 960 to be found on ECM New Series 1682 is one of those
piano events which is hard to forget once experienced in full.
Afanassiev recorded Schubert again for the Denon label in the
1990s, but these studio recordings never came close to capturing
the live fervour of that ECM D 960. This duality of expectation
made me enthusiastic to hear this Moments musicaux and
Sonata D 850, but not without a little trepidation as
to what I might find.
As the ECM blurb points out, these two Schubert opuses are relatively
extrovert works, though as Radu Lupu shows, the Moments musicaux are also filled
with poetry and eloquence of expression. Afanassiev lays the
episodic nature of the C major opener rather bare, allowing
the music to speak for itself but not giving the piece the same
sense of natural flow which Lupu manages to introduce, while
at the same time portraying individual character in each element.
With rich piano tone and a fine touch, Afanassiev’s approach
is one you can grow to appreciate, but might seem a little less
than warm and welcoming to start with. The magnificent A-flat
major movement is initially given fine expression and shape
in this recording, though there are some accents which jump
out rather than being prepared as you might expect. The broken-chord
accompaniment from 1:34 is presented rather strangely, with
the bass note separated and a distinct lack of pedaling. If
you are used to Lupu this will seem rather willfully ascetic,
though the singing line of the melody takes on a different kind
of life in this context, and the drama of this material’s
development later on reveals something of Afanassiev’s
logic here.
The dance of the F minor movement is less typically bouncy than
in many performances and about half the tempo of Lupu. Once
accustomed to the slow tempo one can hear where Afanassiev is
giving us an interesting view of this piece, but it will be
another ‘love or loathe’ moment for many. The C-sharp
minor movement is carefully etched and with plenty of inner
detail, and it is only with the F minor Allegro Vivace
that the promise of extrovert music making is delivered. The
poignancy of the final A-flat major Allegretto is subsumed
in a lack of breath between the phrases, and while the music
has a fine atmosphere the whole thing could do with being less
compressed.
This is a Moments musicaux which can fascinate, but will
I suspect be a frustration to many. I think it’s probably
best to ditch preconceptions about how one thinks this music
should ‘go’, and seek the inner life which Afanassiev
gives the music here. The playing is undoubtedly fine, and I
appreciate the new angles we are given on Schubert, but this
recording stubbornly refuses to become a favourite and seems
to set out with this as one of its principal aims.
The Sonata in D Major D 850 is described by Afanassiev
in his booklet notes as “an assortment of games played
by Schubert and those pianists who condescend to become children
again without incurring the wrath of their friends and colleagues.”
Valery Afanassiev’s scattergun references and associations
with these pieces in the booklet might be helpful in interpreting
his interpretations, but are something of a subjective gallimaufry
even when presenting potentially relevant quotes and pointing
towards historical context. Of the performance, the first movement
is rather measured, with more excitement generated by Michel Dalberto, though his is arguably a touch too far
in the direction of precipitousness. This slowness is more apparent
in the con moto second movement, which is very downbeat.
There is more life but not much more drama in the Scherzo,
and the playful element in the final Rondo comes across
well, though this is one of Schubert’s movements I would
challenge anyone to play and not make it sound playful.
I am reluctant to give Afanassiev’s Sonata D 850
short shrift, but the conclusion has to be the same as with
the Moments musicaux. This is an approach which I am
glad to say brings new points of view interest to works which
run the risk of standardised performance based on received views
of practice current or past. One thing of which you cannot accuse
Valery Afanassiev is following trends or taking easy options.
The problem is that, rather than taking up a position of significance
in their own right these performances rather inspire me to return
to ones which I know have given me satisfaction in the past,
or which have inspired more recently. Paul Lewis falls into this latter camp, and it just so
happens that his Moments musicaux on Harmonia Mundi HMC
902136.37 have already tickled my fancy as well.
Beautifully recorded and certainly stimulating in terms of interpretative
controversy, I regret to say I doubt Valery Afanassiev’s
second Schubert recording for ECM will achieve the same ‘connoisseur’s
choice’ as his first.
Dominy Clements
Masterwork Index: Schubert
piano sonatas
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Valery Afanassiev (piano)
