Next to the bland and flat-footed quality of Alain Planès’ previous Haydn releases, the pianist fares relatively well in these four late sonatas. Granted, Planès never plays softly enough for his well-intentioned phrase shaping in the C major No. 58 Andante con espressione to elegantly register–and who needs those mannered tenutos on the Rondo’s opening two notes (not Haydn, that’s for sure!)? The pianist also tapers the E-flat No. 59 first movement’s phrases to arch effect. If his C major No. 60 and E-flat major No. 62 first movements lack Marc-André Hamelin’s extraordinary sheen and astute timing, both finales’ brash dynamism and biting accents do ample justice to the composer’s trick endings and harmonic detours. At the same time, Hamelin’s superior rhythmic and linear control sustain No. 62’s Adagio more convincingly than Planès’ comparatively generalized rendition. No complaints regarding Harmonia Mundi’s superb sonics.
