A collection that will give great pleasure. Sample it anywhere and there can be no mistaking who this is – you know great pianists by their sound.
Kempff was one of the most distinguished German pianists of the last century, blossoming through two decades in the Austro-German repertory after the death of Schnabel and Edwin Fischer, but he never carried the flame quite as they did. Performing bravura pieces didn't interest him, so the Toccata, the Concert-Studiesafter Paganini, Op 10, and the Abegg Variations aren't here. Nevertheless it's a good selection, lacking only the Fantasy Pieces, Op 12, to give a rounded picture of the phenomenal explosion of Schumann's creativity for the piano that took place between the ages of 20 and 29.
Kempff's special quality seems to be a songfulness and cantabile style which is in danger of becoming a forgotten art nowadays. Listening to him in Schumann, it's as if a wind is blowing through, rising and falling, sweeping incident along and carrying everything forward: song, dance, stories, poems, moods, portraits, parades of characters, visions of landscape, recollections.
Few players have matched his infallible touch with the way the music holds together.
As pianism his Carnaval may not leave you astonished, but it's immaculately characterised: festive, buoyant, irresistible in movement, the comings and goings of the masked personages and the guest appearances of 'Chopin' and 'Paganini' all spot on. There's no single right way to play this masterpiece, but his is vivid.
When he made the earliest of these recordings he was already 71; the last are from his 78th year.
In the later ones you notice more weight on the keys and perhaps a reduced inclination to be volatile; but he has kept his technique in trim, and continues to sound at ease with the instrument.
The difficult numbers in the Davidsbündlertänze are hard for every pianist, but Kempff doesn't see them as virtuoso challenges to be confronted and dispatched. Always the music is paramount, and beautiful sound, and a control of voices under the fingers that seem to be following Schumann instinctively in the exploration of the piano's potential. The opening of Kreisleriana hangs fire as if he were feeling his way into it but the rest is magnificent and thrillingly projected.
When at his best you have the impression his insights aren't only musical but brought to bear on every area of Schumann's imagination. All the big works have this definition and can be counted among the best on record. The Fantasy comes high on the list, perhaps top, as does the undervalued Humoreske. He's a guide to Schumann you should not be without, authoritative and companionable, balanced and most human.