This is the second instalment of a period-instruments series pairing Schumann’s concertos and piano trios.
Alexander Melnikov plays an 1837 Erard in the Piano Concerto, an 1847 Streicher in the Trio in F, Op. 80.
He uses both instruments’ lean tonal profiles to provide balances and colours that are still rare in this repertoire.
Some of his personal touches in the concerto, especially the leisurely tempo for the finale, seem bound to divide opinion.
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On the other hand, in the trio there’s an uncluttered openness, a spaciousness that’s got nothing to do with speed and a clarity, that places everything in perfect perspective.
