In Schubert’s oft-recorded Impromptus, young Taiwanese pianist Chiao-Ying Chang has the advantage of a refulgent Kawai concert grand, with vibrant surround-sound engineering to match. There’s no questioning the high professional level of her polished pianism. Chiao-Ying fares best in her playfully shaded E-flat Impromptu, while gauging the D.899 A-flat piece’s cascading arpeggios to symmetrical perfection. The G-flat Impromptu promisingly unfolds at a true alla breve tempo, only to dissipate under the weight of broadened cadence points and gratuitous ritards that pull the long melodic arcs out of shape. Chiao-Ying’s overly literal treatments of D.899 No. 1 and D.935 No. 1 lack the interior drama and flexibility needed to drive the music forward and move the listener. She also tiptoes around the D.935 No. 4’s implicit brio and dynamic thunder that Krystian Zimerman serves up with even more technical refinement. Do Chiao-Ying’s accomplished yet essentially generic interpretations warrant Audite’s premium price tag in the face of highly regarded contenders from Schnabel to Zimerman, with Lupu, Schiff, Uchida, and Pires in between? Consider that question before you buy.
