Haydn: Piano Sonatas, Vol. 3

Hyperion’s Record of the Month is the third double-volume release in Marc-André Hamelin’s much-praised series of Haydn’s keyboard sonatas. Haydn wrote around sixty keyboard sonatas and this selection of eleven focuses on those from the 1770s, including the great C minor sonata from the composer’s ‘Sturm und Drang’ period, with its dynamic contrasts and virtuoso demands. These are bookended by three from Haydn’s earliest output from the 1750s, most likely penned for his young female pupils to play, and the D major sonata written during the second of the mature composer’s triumphant London visits in 1794. In all these fascinating, idiosyncratic works, Marc-André Hamelin wears his renowned virtuosity lightly, while playing with understated wit and the elegant, immaculate musicianship that has come to define one of the greatest pianists of our time. Famed virtuoso pianist Marc-André Hamelin is best known for his recordings of extraordinarily difficult keyboard music, such as the mysterious sonatas of Alexander Scriabin, or splashy works by Franz Liszt, Charles Alkan, and Leopold Godowsky. However, his recordings of the classical piano sonatas of Franz Joseph Haydn have provided a fascinating byway where listeners can appreciate Hamelin's artistry in music of comparative simplicity and abundant elegance and wit. The third volume in Hyperion's critically praised series is a double-disc, like the previous volumes, and presents 11 sonatas selected from the early, middle, and late series. Characteristically for Hamelin, the playing is brisk and sparkling, and still bespeaks his showmanship, though the approach he takes is not authentic to the period, and his interpretations seem to transcend stylistic dogma. Instead, he relies on his own taste and sense of proportions to make music that should appeal to any listener for its good natured moods and attractive formal balance, mixed with sensitive expressions. Hyperion's recorded sound is clean and noiseless, so every note of these nuanced performances is exquisitely preserved. Highly recommended.