These four Beethoven sonata radio transmissions featuring Annie Fischer first appeared on a 1996 BBC Radio Classics CD release that lasted in the catalog for about a minute. Newly reissued and remastered by ICA Classics, the performances complement the legendary pianist’s studio recordings of the same works in several respects.
Fischer’s 1971 BBC reading of the little two-movement Op. 49 No. 1 sonata, for example, proves more rounded and expansive in comparison to her terser Hungaroton studio version. The 1977 Op. 28 “Pastoral” features a gorgeous opening Allegro movement, where Fischer’s subtle tempo fluctuations allow the rapid scales to really breathe. Yet her lyrical way with the second movement markedly contrasts to the woodwind-like profile characterizing the drier and faster Hungaroton recording.
Perhaps the BBC Maida Vale studio’s warm ambience contributes to the 1977 BBC Op. 109’s more fluent and songful impression next to Fischer’s Hungaroton traversal, although her 1959 EMI recording captures the pianist on prime form (compare this third movement’s scintillating Variation III to its later, slower counterparts, for instance). So does her great reference-worthy EMI 1963 Op. 111. To be sure, Fischer’s magisterial concentration in the first-movement introduction retains its authority in 1977, but the Arietta’s cumulative trajectory is undermined by moments of rhythmic unsteadiness absent from the earlier and later studio versions. However, it’s easy to overlook such occasional flaws in light of how Annie Fischer profoundly communicates her affinity with and commitment to this repertoire.
