Classical

The latest CD releases reviewed

SCHUBERT: PIANO SONATA NO 21 IN B FLAT D960; ALLEGRETTO IN C MINOR; MOMENTS MUSICAUX Stephen Kovacevich (piano) EMI Classics 503 4232 *****

There's an uncompromising air about Stephen Kovacevich's 1994 much-reissued recording of Schubert's last piano sonata. It's a performance that stays out of the middle ground, shifting between a mostly gentle reflectiveness and a probing incisiveness. The contrast between the two can shockingly cut to the quick. Yet, somehow, against all the odds, the conception remains all of a piece. The scale of the Allegretto in C minor and the six Moments musicaux that complete the disc is much smaller, but Kovacevich's visionary approach goes to the heart of them with equal success. www.emiclassics.com

HAYDN: IL RITORNO DI TOBIA
Roberta Invernizzi (soprano), Sophie Karthäuser (soprano), Ann Hellenberg (alto), Anders J Dahlin (tenor), Nikolay Borchev (bass), VokalEnsemble Köln, Capella Augustina/Andreas Spering Naxos 8.570300-02 (3 CDs)

Haydn's other oratorio - ie the one that's not The Creation - is normally taken to be The Seasons. But there is a third, earlier one,

The Return of Tobias, written in 1775 and revised in 1784. No one claims it to be on the same level

of inspiration as the later works, and within its nearly three-hour duration it doesn't have enough choruses to endear it to choral societies. Andreas Spering's well- energised, well-sung and well- played performance of a work that tends towards Italianate display is attractive at Naxos prices, but partially disabled by the provision of the Italian text without any translation. www.naxos.com

HAYDN: DIE SCHÖPFUNG
Genia Kühmeier (Gabriel), Toby Spence (Uriel), Dietrich Henschel (Raphael), Sophie Karthäuser (Eva), Markus Werba (Adam), Les Arts Florissants/ William Christie Virgin Classics 395 2352 (2 CDs)

Haydn's Creation, the last great oratorio of the 18th century, gets a kind of royal treatment from William Christie. The recording, made at Notre Dame du Liban in Paris, has an in-your-face closeness that captures the colours and textures of the period instruments of Les Arts Florissants with unusual immediacy. The sense of wonder that results is often magical, and the choral singing is of a quality to match. The soloists are less consistent, with the Raphael of Dietrich Henschel at times strangely off the mark in a recording where the good things still easily outweigh any shortcomings. www.virginclassics.com