Dvořák’s 13 Poetic Tone Pictures (1889) have been recorded what is perhaps a surprising number of times. None of them is familiar and I cannot recall ever seeing one played in recital. So why has a complete cycle of attractive piano works by a major composer stubbornly refused to join hands with the ever-popular Slavonic Dances, ubiquitous Humoresque in G flat and the evergreen ‘Songs My Mother Taught Me’?

For one thing, readers expecting to discover unknown Dvořák with the same unforgettable melodies will be disappointed. They fall somewhere between the salon entertainments of Chaminade, Smetana and Moszkowski, and the later works of Brahms. Strangely, having listened to this recording several times now and enjoyed it very much, little of it has entirely lodged in my affections.

The cycle begins with ‘Twilight Way’ (the German title translates better as ‘Nocturnal Walk’). At a time of day when most of us are winding down and considering the first glass of something, the Czechs, if Dvořák is anything to go by, become hyperactive and boisterous. It is one of several titles that does not reflect the music. ‘Spring Song’, one of the loveliest items here (Andsnes played it at the Gramophone Awards ceremony), is more regretful and yearning than full of the joys of. ‘Peasant’s Ballad’ has all the hallmarks of a Czech folk song sung by a peasant but who is also a virtuoso pianist. No 6, given here as ‘Sorrowful Reverie’ (‘Vzpomínání’ in Czech: ‘Memories’), is an enchanting tango. ‘Furiant’, ‘Goblins’ Dance’ and ‘Bacchanal’ (Nos 7, 8 and 10 respectively) are close relatives of the Slavonic Dances and thus more recognisable as ‘by Dvořák’.

Unusually for this pianist, I find his piano tone a little brittle at times. For a mellower alternative, it’s worth investigating Stefan Veselka (Naxos), who also includes Dvořák’s Dumka and Furiant, Op 12, and two miniatures.

Andsnes is the first big name to champion the Poetic Tone Pictures. We need more high-profile pianists on major labels to show the same initiative and introduce their fans to piano music beyond the safe, predictable and over-recorded.