Search - Robert Schumann, Franz [Vienna] Schubert, Clifford Curzon :: Schumann: Fantasie In C, Op.17/Schubert: Sonate In B, D.960

Since Clifford Curzon made so few recordings, anything that appears by this masterful British pianist is welcome. These performances come from a 1974 Salzburg Festival performance, beautifully recorded in vivid stereo by the Austrian Radio. It's a pity that the Schubert duplicates one of the few currently available Curzon recordings (London), especially since the live performance is so similar to the studio recording. They are both great performances, though. Curzon's studio recording of the Schumann was an old mono LP, unavailable for decades. He doesn't milk this piece for all the overt emotion some pianists evoke, but his purposeful playing and untroubled technical execution has its own great rewards. --Leslie Gerber