In the penultimate volume of his Chandos Brahms cycle, Barry Douglas continues to create provocative playlists by liberating short pieces from opus-number groups and strategically programming them alongside larger-scale compositions. His straightforward reserve in the opening Op 118 No 1 provides an effective lead-in to a deliberate, lovingly shaped A minor Sarabande, which, in turn, sets the stage for the Paganini Variations, Book 2. Douglas plays the theme softer than Brahms’s marked forte, yet he brings out Var 1’s legato double notes, staccatos and sforzandos. Var 2’s long-lined octaves are caressingly expressive. He imbues Var 4’s ‘Santa Lucia’ variation with apt rubato droplets, and treats the leggiero writing in Vars 6 and 7 gently, although Var 11’s alternating octaves and single notes don’t quite address the composer’s vivace and scherzando directives.

The D major Variations, Op 21 No 1, better suit Douglas’s finely honed lyricism and contrapuntal awareness, particularly in his cross-rhythmic phrasing of Var 5’s canon in contrary motion and his smooth connection of Var 7’s wide left-hand intervals. His liltingly yielding B minor Sarabande hardly hints at the E flat minor Scherzo up ahead. What the performance lacks in cutting-edge fingerwork, à la Krystian Zimerman’s long-out-of-print edition, it makes up for in gorgeous dabs of colour. He spells out the Op 76 No 3 Intermezzo’s rolled chords with meaningful variety, yet underplays No 4’s poco stringendo double notes. Similarly, Douglas’s direct and unified approach to the quirky Op 21 No 2 Variations operates at lower voltage compared to Garrick Ohlsson’s virtuoso sweep (Hyperion, 11/10). Lastly, Douglas’s beautifully modulated pianism in the three Hungarian Dances takes a back seat to Julius Katchen’s irrepressible swagger and unmatched rhythmic vivacity (Decca). In short, a mixed bag laced with genuine pearls.