The composer and pianist Olivier Chauzu generally proves to be a capable if leisurely tour guide through Isaac Albéniz’s Iberia. He unearths Evocación’s subtle nuances and inner voices at a pace that’s more deliberate than the composer’s Allegretto, yet lacking the forward-impetus of comparably slow readings by Rafael Orozco and Marc-André Hamelin. El Puerto’s syncopations are sectionalized and choppy in Chauzu’s hands, but the heavy tread of his staccatos in El Corpus Christi En Sevilla are convincingly processional in tone and timbre.
Rondeña starts stiffly but becomes more limber as it progresses. Almería’s brusque middle section doesn’t quite rise to Alicia De Larrocha’s giddy rhythmic snap, but the lyrical “dolce” writing is sensitively phrased. Chauzu somewhat tempers Triana’s “anima” directive, in contrast to the sparkling dynamic inflections served up by Eduardo Fernández in his splendid and underrated recording. However, Chauzu frames El Albaicín’s unison octave passages in dark, foreboding tones, and applies tastefully whimsical metric distentions to Lavapiés. Both Málaga and the final piece Eritaña are splendidly articulated, albeit without the cross-rhythmic lilt and powerful chord definition conveyed by both Larrocha and Jean-Francois Heisser. Some might prefer more driving and vivacious climaxes in Jerez, yet Chauzu sustains the long piece well.
Considering Calliope’s full asking price for two CDs and lack of fillers, one must weigh this very good and sometimes outstanding Iberia alongside more consistently distinct competitors that either contain more music (Hamelin), are cheaper (Heisser), or both (Larrocha’s analog and digital Decca versions, and her EMI traversal).
