The long total timings for Joaquín Achúcarro’s newly reissued Schumann C major Fantasy and Kreisleriana (recorded for Ensayo in 2003) do not necessarily indicate slow tempos, but rather reflect the Spanish pianist’s ample yet judiciously proportioned rubatos, together with his tendency to let resolutions and cadences breathe and resonate. Achúcarro’s insightful and well-varied balancing of lines in the Fantasy’s first movement compensates for whatever may be lacking in forward impetus and surface bravura. Is that an ambient change, a noticeable splice, or merely Achúcarro working his tone-color magic when the main theme returns 13 minutes into the movement? Tiny agogic adjustments and an overall light touch help keep the central movement’s obsessive march rhythms alive, while the coda’s treacherous leaps prove no problem for the then-71-year-old virtuoso’s cultivated fingers. Ironically, Achúcarro’s rhetorical phrasing in the lyrical finale sometimes causes the music’s long arcs to dissipate, unlike, say, Sergio Fiorentino’s equally spacious yet more rhythmically focused conception.
Among Kreisleriana’s memorable moments are unorthodox accentuations in the first movement, more strongly articulated little notes than usual in No. 3, a biting, clipped approach to No. 5, and effective crescendos throughout No. 7’s central fugal section. On the other hand, No. 8’s slight tempo manipulations sound more forced than organic, while No. 2’s broadly paced main theme plods. Still, one readily perceives Achúcarro’s cultivated, seasoned artistry, and piano connoisseurs will find much to savor.
