In 2009 the 20-year-old Noboyuki Tsujii came to international attention following his first-place victory in the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, sharing the Gold Medal with Haochen Zhang. Harmonia Mundi released his competition performance of Beethoven’s Hammerklavier Sonata on CD. It takes nerves of steel to get through such a work unscathed, especially in a high-pressure situation such as the Cliburn. Yet Tsujii’s assured pianism revealed no sign of stage fright or self-awareness, if not a great degree of depth.

Returning to Op 106 for his DG solo recital debut, Tsujii’s conception hasn’t changed to any significant degree. His basic tempo for the Allegro assai is on the conservative side of Beethoven’s controversially fast metronome marking, which frames his rather sectionalised and sometimes foursquare shaping of the exposition, although the fugal development section gathers momentum as the pianist’s sonority opens up. Similarly, the Scherzo’s first part unfolds uneventfully, in contrast to its more incisive and detailed reiteration following the explosive upward F major scales in both hands.

The Adagio sostenuto fares best in its softest and sparsest moments, yet the pianist seems to be playing on top of the keys for much of the time, with little weight to the bass lines and chords, and limited dynamic and expressive inflection. Long decorative phrases and embellishments convey a tinkling salon-like aura that is far removed from the anguish and intensity one hears from Schnabel, Arrau or Perahia. However, Tsujii makes up for everything in the finale. He judges the Largo introduction’s silences and false starts with appropriate unpredictability and excitement. While the pianist’s energised yet clear delivery of the fugue doesn’t exactly storm the heavens, the textures remain consistently transparent and the tempo resolutely (if not rigidly) steady, which is not always the case in this movement.

Tsujii precedes the sonata with Liszt’s beautifully effective transcription of Beethoven’s song-cycle An die ferne Geliebte. I like Tsujii’s deliberation and delicacy in the fourth song, ‘Diese Wolken in den Höhen’. Elsewhere he doesn’t come close to matching Leslie Howard’s sophisticated finger legato or skilful melody/accompaniment separation, let alone the older pianist’s faster and shapelier tempos. Should one desire a DG Op 106, Murray Perahia’s 2016 recording remains my top recommendation.