With all due respect to Alica De Larrocha's long-presumed ownership of Spanish Impressionist keyboard repertoire, when it comes to Albéniz, the late Esteban Sánchez easily rivals his more famous compatriot, and then some. If Larrocha's approach to the Iberia suite is analogous to Arthur Rubinstein's Chopin for rhythmic snap and joie de vivre, Sánchez's interpretation relates to the darker, more personalized colorations characterizing Alfred Cortot's Chopin. Outstretched rubatos in the rhapsodic Almeria and Jerez, for example, milk the music's harmonic tension to the nth degree, while the pianist's bottomless arsenal of nuances, articulations, and pedal effects juggle the composer's idiosyncratic textures like a past master tossing off a round of three-dimensional chess. Notice how effortlessly he clarifies the polyphonic trajectory in thickly scored climaxes such as those in Triana and Corpus Christi en Sevilla. And you'll make safe passage through La Vega's smoldering labyrinths, although there's nothing safe concerning Sánchez's impassioned performance of this rarely heard large-scale work. The small pieces are no less deliciously played. While the sonics are close-up and boxy, you still perceive Sánchez's extraordinary tonal genius and communicative immediacy. No Albéniz fan can afford to miss these amazing recordings.

--Jed Distler