Piano Concerto No. 3 [38:16]
Piano Concerto No. 4 [35:01]
Maria João Pires (piano)
Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra/Daniel Harding
rec. Berwaldhalle, Stockholm, 9-11 October 2013
ONYX 4125 [71:30]
When you see Maria João Pires perform it is astonishing to think
that she has reached her 70th birthday, so sprightly and constantly
questioning is her playing. It is every bit as astonishing to think that
this is her first disc of Beethoven concertos. Better late than never,
though, and I hope that this is only the first such disc of many.
Knowing what I do of Pires’ playing style, and having been lucky
enough to see her in the flesh a few times with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra,
I was expecting that the fourth concerto would suit her most closely,
its rich vein of lyricism perfectly matched to her delicate approach at
the keyboard. To my surprise, I found the third concerto much more compelling.
There’s nothing wrong with No. 4 and the delicacy of Pires’
approach pays dividends, particularly in the first movement, which combines
architectural scale with plenty of subtle insights. It’s Harding
who comes off better, though, with some carefully observed shading of
the orchestral picture, especially evident in the abruptness of the strings
at the start of the slow movement, or the bristling sense of fun in the
finale. Pires’ fingers caress the keys gently in the first movement
and dance over them playfully in the finale, turning her style to suit
every phrase and mood.
The third concerto comes off even better, though. For one thing, it has
a fantastically lithe sound that makes its C minor world appear even more
threatening than usual. The strings sound thin but insistent in that opening
motif — Harding has clearly been listening to his “period”
colleagues. There are plenty of touches in the orchestral sound, such
as the plangent bassoon and edgy oboes, that add fantastic flashes of
colour at every opportunity. Harding’s control over the orchestra
is agile and impressive so that, when Pires enters, she doesn’t
so much pour oil on troubled waters as jump in at the deep end and move
the drama up a notch. It’s an incredibly impressive performance,
like observing two sparring partners, and the same is true of the rambunctious
finale, whose wind flickers in the coda sound fantastically cheeky. In
contrast, the central Largo can rarely have been so peaceful and contemplative,
a beautiful meditation characterised by warm, mellifluous sound and playing
of utterly seamless legato from both piano and orchestra. This disc was
both exhilarating and enlightening to listen to. Let’s hope there
is more on the way.
Simon Thompson
Previous review: John Quinn
Masterwork Index: Concerto
3 ~~ Concerto
4
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