On the plus side for this first volume of Simax’s Debussy piano music cycle, pianist Håkon Austbø’s full-bodied sonority and wide dynamic range do full justice to the composer’s unprecedented sound world as well as underline the music’s links to the great Romantic piano virtuoso tradition. Good examples of this can be found in his energetic projection of Masques’ guitar-like repeated notes, plus his brisker-than-usual pace for Pagodes, where the fountains of arpeggios positively crackle. Conversely, Jardins sous la pluie’s repeated notes and toccata patterns tend to bog down and pull focus from the melodic foreground. Interestingly, the piece’s earlier, less worked out manifestation as the third of the “Forgotten” Images finds Austbø in suppler, more relaxed fettle.
Some listeners may admire how Austbø plays L’isle joyeuse for allure and suggestion, yet I prefer more rhythmic backbone and Lisztian assertiveness in the manner of Vladimir Horowitz or Jean-Yves Thibaudet. And although Austbø’s aforementioned virtues distinguish both books of Images, he doesn’t maintain Mouvement’s swirling textures or the three-against-two patterns in Cloches à travers les feuilles with Pierre-Laurent Aimard’s resolute steadiness and clarity. At the same time, Austbø’s shapely, heartfelt performance of D’un cahier d’esquisses elevates one of Debussy’s less-consequential creations to masterpiece status. The engineering takes on a metallic edge during the music’s loudest moments, lacking the warmth and roundness I associate with Austbø’s superb Messiaen recordings for Naxos. This may not be a first-choice Debussy disc, yet Austbø’s genuine affinity for the idiom cannot be denied. I’m curious how he’ll do the Preludes and the Études. Stay tuned for the remaining volumes…
