As if the title -- The #1 Piano Album -- wasn't enough of a claim, the subtitle goes even further: "The best-loved piano works of all time." Of course it seems impossible to deliver on that statement even with two 75-minute-plus compact discs. But as the discs go rolling by -- as Uchida's elegantly turned interpretation of the opening Allegro of Mozart's famous Sonata in C major, K. 545 is followed by Haebler's gracefully witty interpretation of Mozart's "Alla Turca" finale is followed by Arrau's sensually despairing ...
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As if the title -- The #1 Piano Album -- wasn't enough of a claim, the subtitle goes even further: "The best-loved piano works of all time." Of course it seems impossible to deliver on that statement even with two 75-minute-plus compact discs. But as the discs go rolling by -- as Uchida's elegantly turned interpretation of the opening Allegro of Mozart's famous Sonata in C major, K. 545 is followed by Haebler's gracefully witty interpretation of Mozart's "Alla Turca" finale is followed by Arrau's sensually despairing interpretation of the opening movement of Beethoven's "Moonlight" sonata is followed by Brendel's cool and clear interpretation of Beethoven's "Für Elise" -- one begins to wonder if perhaps the claim is truly justified. And as Wilhelm Kempff's deeply moving interpretation of Schubert's Impromptu in A flat is followed by Bolet's passionate interpretation of Liszt's Liebestraum and Argerich's stunning interpretation of Brahms' Rhapsody No. 2 and Richter's magnificent interpretation of...
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