Stephen Kovacevich's long-anticipated recording of Beethoven's "Hammerklavier" Sonata grasps at the bar upon which the work's reference versions reside. The pianist's rough-hewn energy and kinetic drive in the Allegro hold your attention, albeit at a slightly slower basic tempo than the composer's precipitous metronome marking (one that Charles Rosen and Peter Serkin approximate with cleaner, more dynamically varied results). Kovacevich bears down on the Scherzo's main theme with a heavy hand, yet he gives the Trio its ghostly due. The great Adagio Sostenuto seems unduly brisk and severe next to the desolate drama, tonal variety, and poignant lyricism you hear from Artur Schnabel, Solomon, and Claudio Arrau. But the sudden outbursts in the fourth-movement introduction are proportioned to perfection, where the pianist's blurred pedalings of the trills create a jarring, unforgettable effect. I wouldn't mind Kovacevich's clipped militancy in the Fugue (somewhat in the Pollini-Gulda manner) if it were less monochromatic, but that may be partly due to the too-close-for-comfort sonics.

The Op. 119 Bagatelles and "Les Adieux" Sonata benefit from a warmer ambience, with the microphones better positioned to absorb the biting accents and sharply contoured subito dynamics Beethoven asks for--and Kovacevich delivers like a wicked messenger. Op. 81a is particularly intense and absorbing. Kovacevich effortlessly voices the first movement's unwieldy double thirds and distends the development section's single lines with pinpointed subtlety. He brings out all the melodic eloquence in the E-flat sonata's central movement and rightly refuses to prettify the deep bass-register chords. The arpeggiated outburst that launches the finale lights a fire that doesn't let up until the work's conclusion. Some listeners might find Richard Goode's leaner, suaver Les Adieux easier to live with, but Kovacevich's confrontational artistry does this wonderful sonata equal justice.

The Bagatelles are even better--ravishingly characterized and controlled on every musical and pianistic level. I love how Kovacevich shapes No. 7's weird chains of trills so that the right-hand virtuoso runs really explode; and the touching Schubertian spin he brings to the closing number is a delight. In sum, the Bagatelles and Les Adieux merit solid recommendations, while the Hammerklavier, though admirable in many respects, could have been better still.

--Jed Distler