Review: Schumann - Fantasy, Kreisleriana

Yeol Eum Son exemplifies the sometimes harsh realities of piano competitions. She placed second in both the Tchaikovsky and Van Cliburn competitions, and third at the Rubinstein competition. Top prizes in these events were awarded to pianists including Daniil Trifonov, Igor Levit, Alexander Gavrylyuk, and Nobuyuki Tsujii.

Schumann – Yeol Eum Son

Amazon

Presto

Apple

Following two successful albums for Decca, Son now turns to Schumann, a composer whose works she memorably performed during those competitions. This new release reveals her as an assured interpreter of his sometimes elusive music.

Her performance of the Fantasy in C aligns more closely with Pollini than with Pletnev, possessing an almost Beethovenian quality, perhaps alluding to the composer whose theme features prominently. Following the practice of András Schiff, Son includes a lesser-known coda in the third movement, where the final bars restate the Beethoven theme heard at the close of the first movement.

This interpretation tells its story sincerely, is executed with care, and impresses with its sheer virtuosity, especially in the difficult second movement. It may not satisfy listeners seeking the hyper-romantic approach of Pletnev or, to a lesser extent, Perahia (Son’s finale is comparatively dry and matter-of-fact), but it remains an impressive and largely successful performance.

The Kreisleriana is a different story. The turbulent emotional landscape characteristic of Schumann’s major piano cycles is navigated with outstanding sensitivity; her control of tone, pedal, and phrasing is superb. I was pleased to hear Son is unafraid to employ generous pedaling in the first movement; recently, many pianists seem to sacrifice Schumann’s tumultuous textures for the sake of ‘clarity’ – a seemingly new-fashioned ideal.

Listen, for instance, to how expertly the quiet chords of the fourth movement (track 4) penetrate while remaining hushed, or how the seventh movement (track 10) allows the main melody to sing out above the underlying blur of rapid notes. Combined with a fine recording by the Ondine engineers and a responsive instrument, the Kreisleriana alone makes this album worth acquiring.