The final disc includes the twenty wonderful Pieces that are the collections 116-119, embracing some of Brahms’s most touching miniatures, delving deep into his soul, which Igor Levit treats as heroic/muscular and intimate/confiding, among the best versions of these special sets, poignant/transporting, too (Opus 118/2 & 5) if not quite matching Clifford Curzon for wit in 119/3. The Second Piano Concerto opens with a particularly refulgent and poetic horn solo before Levit plunges headlong into the piano’s first flourishes. It’s a spontaneous performance – lively, go-ahead, fiery (emulating Richter in his RCA recording with Leinsdorf) and flexible – Levit dynamic and agile in the first two movements, although the second one is less than tumultuous, Christian Thielemann rather sentimental at times, albeit he and the Vienna Philharmonic generally offer fine support (occasionally texturally mushy) at their best in the slow movement, and because of antiphonal violins, the cellist (Tamás Varga) is adjacent to the pianist, which Brahms surely regarded as standard. The Finale is quite leisurely and delicate, playful and robust, before sinking into reverie and then speeding to the finishing post. Concerto No.1 opens less than arrestingly, timpani and horns a little subdued, if with greater personality once Levit arrives, even if the first movement is somewhat dissected along its course. The Adagio digs deep without making it obvious, and the Finale, spirited, with a crowning cadenza, is probably the highlight of this performance, part of a recommendable set which has a particular allure. Good sound (mostly this year) on Sony Classical 19658897652 (3 CDs), which also includes pianist and conductor four-handed for a charming Waltz, Brahms at his most insouciant.
Johannes Brahms
Piano Concerto No. 1 in D minor Op. 15
Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-flat major Op. 83
- Igor Levit, Christian Thielemann & the Vienna Philharmonic
7 Fantasias Op. 116
3 Intermezzi Op. 117
6 Piano Pieces Op. 118
4 Piano Pieces Op. 119
Waltz op. 39 no. 15 (version for piano 4-hands with Christian Thielemann)