SCHUBERT: 3 Impromptus, D. 946; Menuett and Trio in A, D. 334; Andante in C, D. 29; Piano Piece in A, D. 604; Adagio in B, D. 612; 17 German Dances, D. 366; Variations on a Theme by Anselm Huttenbrenner, D. 576 – Joshua Pierce, piano – MSR 1206, 65:17 [Distr. by Albany] ****:
Joshua Pierce’s recordings have been generally well-received in the pages of Audiophile Audition, spanning across a wide spectrum of repertory. This is the third volume of his Schubert recordings, and I find his playing gossamer and direct, veering neither to the right nor to the left in terms of romantic emphasis. If I had to make a judgment call I would say that these recordings are actually tinged with a slight degree of anti-romanticism, though this term is not meant in a disparaging way. It’s just that Pierce takes his own unique temperamental leanings and applies them directly to the notes of the score without any predispositions. Schubert is big enough to take a lot of varied interpretive nuances, and Pierce’s have a lot of clarity and insight. I guess one might be attempted to argue that any instrumentalist with a 30-year association with the music of John Cage would not be easily tempted towards romantic excess, and it would be a good argument. But I don’t get the feeling that Pierce steers away from such things philosophically but naturally, a melding of an objective piano style with a composer whose music is often subjected to the highest degree of bias.
This program is an attractive one because it contains works that you don’t come by all the time. The D. 946 Impromptus were composed right before Schubert’s death but released publicly in an edition edited by Brahms 40 years later. They have the same degree of warmth and style that are present in his more popular (and less frequently recorded) sets of Op. 90 and 142. The 17 German Dances were published piecemeal, again in an edition by Brahms for piano four-hands, though Diabelli put out eight of them in 1824. The variations and other miscellaneous pieces are fine works that make a nice icing for the collection that needs them.
MSR’s sound is very good, slightly dry (in keeping with the pianist’s style), but also well-placed sonically. A fine issue.
— Steven Ritter
