Muzio Clementi’s three Op. 40 Sonatas were published in 1802, and in them you can readily hear those qualities that lead directly to Beethoven. For instance, the Italian composer generated great dramatic contrasts through an almost-symphonic grasp of dynamic momentum, and had a knack for effortless asymmetrical phrase shapes and the use of silence to beckon the listener’s attention. Clementi’s keyboard deployment is more overtly virtuosic and flamboyantly projected than anything his younger rival Mozart concocted, although never as deep. For Clementi, the instrument comes first. Pietro De Maria revels in the music’s extroversion and surface virtuosity, and imbues each sonata with refined, humorously pointed fingerwork, exquisite shadings, and elegant phrases timed to a proverbial tee. I hope that this disc will be the forerunner of a complete Clementi cycle from this gifted young pianist, whose brilliant work is gorgeously engineered. A must for piano fans. [1/27/2000]
