I’ll be brief: there is no better recording available of Piano Concerto No. 22. Indeed, it’s been a very memorable year so far for this particular work, with the excellent new Zacharias on MDG and the recently reissued Annie Fischer on EMI. But if I had to live with just one performance, this would be it. Rudolf Buchbinder plays with consummate taste and imagination, with an ear-catching approach to ornamentation, lively cadenzas, and a characterful interplay with the super wind section of the Vienna Symphony that’s simply irresistible. Trumpets and drums have excellent presence throughout, and the slow interlude in the finale is absolutely heavenly.
The same qualities apply to Concerto No. 23, where Buchbinder phrases the sublime Adagio as though he’s improvising it. The chamber music-like give and take between soloist and orchestra pays equally rich dividends here and makes the first-movement development section and the entire finale a genuine pleasure. Beautifully balanced and warm sound further enhances a release that no one who loves Mozart can afford to ignore. It’s very gratifying that Guenther Haenssler has gotten his hands on this cycle (originally on Calig). It has received so little attention on these shores, and I can’t think of a better way to launch a new label. Exceptional! [7/29/2004]
