Håkon Austbø - Brahms: Late Piano Pieces (2009)

Brilliant has found numerous ways to package Håkon Austbø's 2002 recordings of Brahms' late piano music. Prior to the release of this single disc in 2010, the performances have been included in a six-disc set of Brahms' complete piano music, and a two-disc set of his early, middle, and late piano pieces, as well as appearing as three different single discs. The real question is whether Austbø's performances are worth hearing, and they surely are. With his virtuoso technique, sonorous tone, and soulful way with a phrase, Austbø is clearly a born Brahms player, and his take on the German master's late piano music is a masterful combination of drama and poetry. There's tragedy in his Ballade in G minor, tenderness in his Intermezzo in F minor, and an absolute refusal to yield despite overwhelming odds in his Rhapsodie in E flat major. Listeners may already have their favorite recordings of these works; who can forget Kempff's inwardness, Backhaus' expressivity, Kovacevich's heroism, Badura-Skoda's lyricism, or Lupu's melancholy? But for anyone looking for another (or a first) recording, Austbø's is well worth auditioning in whatever package, particularly in Brilliant's consistently cool, clear sound.