Franz Schubert was deeply attached to the piano. You can sense this when you hear Robert Franz' magnificent transcription of Schubert's quartet Death and the Maiden, with which the Duo Lontano (Babette Hierholzer and Jürgen Appell) open their second GENUIN CD. In a recording that exclusively features Schuberts music, the structures and the relentlessness of the work are mercilessly and yet beautifully sculpted in all their grandeur. Suddenly the quartet is very similar to the great F minor Fantasy, while the Notturno, originally for piano trio, is given a new sense of levitation. A great ensemble, two wonderful pianists, three summits of chamber music!