It’s unlikely you’ll need all 66 of Grieg’s Lyric Pieces, and this compilation offers 18 of the better known among them in winning accounts from Leif Ove Andsnes. His breezy style and agile finger-work affords the necessary lightness and textural transparency, at times bringing an impressionist feel to his performances, most palpable in “Bell Ringing” (Op. 54 No. 6) and “Erotic” (No. 5 from the Op. 43 group). Andsnes also is very fine in those pieces based on folkloristic idioms, such as the “Peasant’s Song” (Op. 65 No. 2) and “March of the Trolls” (Op. 54 No. 3), which display the right blend of robust athleticism and (in the former case especially) nostalgia. This group ends with the best-known of the series, “Wedding Day at Troldhaugen”, to which Andsnes adds moments of touching allure in the more reflective central section.
Among the fillers here, Andsnes’ uncommonly severe reading of the C-sharp minor “Album Leaf” (Op. 28 No. 4) proves he’s never reluctant to explore Grieg’s less familiar darker side. Incidentally, he’s just re-recorded a selection of the Lyric Pieces on Grieg’s own piano, so you may prefer to await the spring release of this new CD before committing to this budget reissue. However, if you need just a general overview, this HMV disc provides lucid, insightful performances that are far better recorded than Emil Gilels’ accounts in DG’s “The Originals” series. Gilels plays superbly but tends to over-inflate Grieg’s simple melodies, whereas Andsnes (who has this music in his blood) molds and inflects these folksy miniatures with delicious understatement.
