Carl Reinecke (1824-1910) garnered veneration and respect throughout his long life for his multi-faceted talents as a pianist, conductor, teacher, and prolific composer with more than 300 works in many genres to his credit. His mellifluous conservative style was formed early on, and never really changed. It owes a great deal to his role model and mentor Robert Schumann, although one can detect traces of early Wagner and more than a hint of Brahms-like contrapuntal rigor. His works for two pianos are consummately crafted and skillfully deployed between both instruments.
A good starting point is the Variations on a Sarabande by Bach Op. 24, which ranges from obsessive dotted rhythms right out of Schumann’s Symphonic Etudes to the kind of Bach-inspired thickness typical of Max Reger, minus the clutter and pomposity. The three Sonatas for two pianos contain plenty of rhythmic surprises and harmonic twists to hold one’s attention, and deserve consideration by piano duos looking for obscure yet substantial repertoire.
I suspect that Reinecke’s student Busoni modeled his Duetto Concertante upon his teacher’s less interesting Concert Allegro, both of which are based on the finale of Mozart’s Piano Concerto K. 459. The Impromptu on a Motif from Schumann’s Manfred is anything but “impromptu” in its intricate passagework and carefully worked out registrations. Imagine a Brahms Overture reworked by César Franck, and you’ll get the Prologus Solemnis.
To my ears, Gluck’s unpretentious little Gavotte gets crushed under Reinecke’s weighty variations and pedal-point sequences, but the litheness and transparency of the Genova and Dimitrov duo’s ensemble playing makes the best possible case for this work, and indeed for Reinecke’s complete two-piano output. Everything about this release constitutes a labor of love, from the interpretations and the wonderful engineering down to Matthias Corvin’s booklet notes. A valuable addition to the catalog.
