To follow up his Steinway & Sons label debut devoted to Cuban piano music, the Russian/American pianist Alexandre Moutouzkine charts relatively familiar territory. His own transcription of Stravinsky’s Firebird Suite differs from the Guido Agosti version in that it includes two extra sections (the Introduction and ‘Dance of the Firebird’), and also in regard to Moutouzkine’s more overtly virtuoso piano-writing. He subjects the ‘Infernal Dance’ and ‘Final Hymn’ to a wider array of technical fireworks, from lightning-quick scales in all directions to fistfuls of big, booming chords. It may sound like Stravinsky filtered through Liszt but Moutouzkine gets away with it on account of his frighteningly authoritative fingerwork and a sonority that can fill a stadium.

In the Three Movements from Petrushka, Moutouzkine focuses on nailing the tricky textural details to the point where the melodic trajectory weaves in and out of focus, in contrast to Beatrice Rana’s far more proportioned and effortless traversal (Warner Classics, 11/19). But the pianist captures the lyrical melancholy of ‘Chez Pétrouchka’ well, not to mention his superb handling of the extensive marcato passages of ‘La semaine grassé’, even if Yuja Wang (DG, 7/10) and Maurizio Pollini (DG, 6/72) remain nonpareil for lightness and shimmer.

The violinist Chloé Kiffer joins for Ravel’s two sonatas. Her pure and focused tone makes for an attractive foil to Moutouzkine’s hearty pianism and their impassioned, big-boned interpretation keeps the music moving forwards and upwards, minimising its rambling qualities. That said, I still prefer the recording by Leonidas Kavakos and Peter Nagy (ECM, 2/04) for its wider scope of expressive and colouristic nuance. Conversely, Moutouzkine’s slightly heavy touch in the G major Sonata’s Allegretto pales next to Jeremy Denk’s ethereal phrasing and harmonic awareness in collaboration with Joshua Bell. The duo strike a perfect balance in the central ‘Blues’ movement, where Kiffer’s delicious portamentos are right on the money, stylistically speaking. Aside from their witty imitative repartee at the third movement’s outset, Kiffer and Moutouzkine seem careful and microphone-shy in the ‘Perpetuum mobile’ when measured next to the deft interplay and brisker pace of the Jansen/Golan (Decca, 11/10), Ehnes/Chen (CBC) and Mullova/Canino (Decca, 8/90) recordings. Fine sound and brief yet well written notes by Adam Hockman.