Search - Percy Grainger :: Plays Bach & Chopin

Percy Grainger is remembered mostly as a composer, but in his time he was a noted touring pianist as well. On this disc, one of two from Biddulph featuring his work, Grainger plays the well-known Chopin Sonatas No. 2 and 3, and a group of Bach transcriptions, one of them his own. Grainger could be a very uneven pianist, but most of these performances catch him at his best, playing accurately and imaginatively with that special insight that only composers seem to have. I like the Chopin sonatas especially well, but the early electrical sound and low-level surface noise must be braved o enjoy all of this playing. --Leslie Gerber