The stylistic sympathy and technical élan Wilhelm Backhaus brought to his pioneering 1928 HMV set of Chopin’s Etudes had largely eroded when he came to make his early 1950s Chopin recordings for Decca. In the B-flat minor sonata’s opening movement Backhaus’ heavy touch and squarish phrasing are compounded by blurred notes and overpedaled passages. He starts the Scherzo at one tempo, only to speed up to another after several bars (one of Backhaus’ most irritating habits), although his rock-steady control in the Finale impresses. Some of the Etudes, such as the F major (Op. 10 No. 8), “Butterfly” (Op. 25 No. 9), and “Winter Wind” (Op. 25 No. 11), are quite virile and solidly projected; not so the stodgy, Teutonic (or rather “Two-ton-ic”) A-flat major (Op. 10 No. 10), C-sharp minor (Op. 25 No. 7), and F major (Op. 25 No. 3). The G minor Ballade contains marvelously fleet passagework (the coda’s right-hand runs, for instance) alongside the heavy-handed, overpedaled qualities cited in the Sonata. On the other hand, Backhaus reveals an unsuspected affinity for the three Mazurkas and the A-flat Waltz, all crisply dispatched with lilt, rhythmic point, and character. As you’ve gathered by now, this is an uneven collection, but specialist collectors will appreciate Testament’s superb transfers.
