Schumann: Piano Concerto (2012)

Angela Hewitt, known mostly for recordings of Baroque music, has embarked on the classics of the 19th century. She doesn't lack for competition when it comes to the perennially popular Piano Concerto of A minor, Op. 54, of Schumann, but several attractive points keep her in the crowded game. As you might expect, Hewitt doesn't try to tear the roof off with her Fazioli piano; the overall tenor of the recording is quiet and deliberate (even very deliberate in the concerto's finale). However, within this framework, Hewitt ... Read More

Angela Hewitt, known mostly for recordings of Baroque music, has embarked on the classics of the 19th century. She doesn't lack for competition when it comes to the perennially popular Piano Concerto of A minor, Op. 54, of Schumann, but several attractive points keep her in the crowded game. As you might expect, Hewitt doesn't try to tear the roof off with her Fazioli piano; the overall tenor of the recording is quiet and deliberate (even very deliberate in the concerto's finale). However, within this framework, Hewitt carves out a good deal of contrast. The second theme of the concerto's opening movement becomes its own little lyric sphere here, and many details in the finale are beautifully teased out (some syncopations emerge in the piano part that you may well not have noticed). Another strong point is that the album presents all three of Schumann's works for piano and orchestra in one place, a comparative rarity. The Introduction and Allegro appassionato, Op. 92, and Introduction and... Read Less