This companion issue to Emanuel Ax’s outstanding disc of the Second Concerto (6/98) and other concertante pieces similarly offers period performances unlikely to be outshone for their imagination and poetry. Ax disarms criticism over the idea of period performance by choosing an Erard piano of 1851, which produces warm, full tone without any restriction on agility, thanks to the light action. Only the clattery quality in the topmost register betrays the age of the instrument, and the transparency of textures is a delight, with the writing for left hand articulated by Ax with phenomenal clarity. Mackerras heightens the drama of these readings by encouraging the OAE to produce the widest range of dynamics, equally defying the idea of period performance as lacking in weight.
As in the Second Concerto Ax’s rubato could not be more persuasive, less extreme than Argerich’s on her recent EMI recording of this work, but just as poetic. Even this team cannot conceal the triviality of the La ci darem la mano Variations, but with rhythms sprung jauntily it readily becomes a fun piece not to be taken too seriously, a vehicle for expressive virtuosity with wit and poetry combined. The inclusion of the A minor Grande Valse brillante for solo piano may seem inconsistent, but it again finds Ax tenderly poetic. Yet if a solo makeweight was wanted, why not one of the isolated Chopin pieces like the Barcarolle, the Berceuse or the Tarantelle? Excellent sound, at once clear and atmospheric.'