Recorded in concert in the bright acoustic of the Chapelle historique du Bon-Pasteur in Montréal, Canada, this fine Schubertian program presents Swiss pianist Frank Lévy in a very appealing if inconsistent light. The performances are lovingly outlined, sensitive, detailed, and sincere, but they too often stop the natural flow of the music. Either by overabundance of interpretive intentions or as a result of nervousness due to the live recordings, Lévy’s playing sometimes goes slightly over the edge, capriciously changing tempo within a single phrase or adding unnecessary accents. Furthermore, his technique is secure but not always perfectly clean, occasioning a few minor accidents or unbalanced chords in the course of the recital. The big A major Sonata sounds more like a collection of nice impressionistic moments rather than a vast architecture of epic proportion and content. The Hungarian Melody similarly lacks coherence, while the Allegretto in C minor, taken at a ceremonious pace, favors gravity above tender melancholy.
Lévy’s delicate touch is at its best in the ravishing 12 Ländler and in a deliciously intimate, slowly rocking reading of Soirées de Vienne No. 7, where the superb Fazioli piano can display all its magic charm. Despite an obvious, deeply felt affinity with Schubert’s bittersweet universe, also expressed in the lucid liner notes written by Lévy himself, these performances are up against formidable competition that prevents Lévy’s from receiving a first choice recommendation. But as a visit card for the pianist’s fine artistry, they are ideal.
