This excellent recital confirms pianist Andreas Haefliger’s ability to grace many styles and genres with fresh insights. He shapes the outer movements of Schubert’s D. 537 A minor sonata with freer metrics and more massive sonorities than the Apollonian, laser-like Michelangeli and Uchida, while nearly matching the latter’s amazing right-hand legato octaves in the middle movement. Haefliger pays keen attention to the carefully differentiated dynamic levels in the Adès piece and effortlessly executes the repeated notes murmuring in the background.
Much as I enjoyed Haefliger’s earlier Avie recording of Mozart’s K. 570 sonata, this remake is better still. The pianist’s long-lined, vocally inclined way with the first two movements prevents the brisk tempos from sounding the least bit glib. By contrast, Haefliger clarifies the finale’s imitative writing as if his fingers were members of a tightly knit woodwind ensemble.
Uncommonly clear articulation distinguishes the Beethoven sonata’s knotty first movement, albeit without the visionary bleakness of Maurizio Pollini and Rudolf Serkin. Because Haefliger steadfastly maintains the Arietta’s tempo relationships from section to section, the “jazzy” variation (measure 48) emerges at a pace that forces even this pianist’s formidable fingers to undot some of the syncopations. But that’s a minor quibble in light of the beauty, fluidity, and deep feeling he conveys in this score. Hopefully Perspectives 1 signifies that Perspectives 2 is cooking on the backburner. Warmly recommended.
