Buriedtreasure

Pianist Ivan Ilić discusses three cherished rarities from his record collection

Hans Otte The Book of Sounds

Hans Otte (piano)

Kuckuck KUCK 069/070

Hans Otte was a composer and pianist, and wrote some really stunning music. Book of Sounds is a difficult piece to describe; it’s very contemplative and there’s a lot of repetition of chords and arpeggios. Essentially the performer decides how many times they will repeat the sequences. Although Otte was a pianist, his pianistic means are limited, but he’s so engaged in what he’s playing. It’s just a very beautiful piece.

Brahms Variations on an Original Theme, Op. 21

Bálint Vázsonyi (piano) PYE 5425049

Bálint Vázsonyi was a Hungarian pianist, and what I really appreciate about this recording is that it’s got this really natural feeling. It doesn’t sound like it has been manipulated in the studio – it sounds as if he’s sitting in the room with you; and again there are imperfections but there’s also a charm to it. He made it in 1968 and it’s not among the most popular variations, but I think they’re sort of pastoral and unfold beautifully. There’s a certain warmth about this recording which I find charming, and I listen to it over and over again.

Schubert Piano Sonata in B f lat major, D960

Friedrich Wührer (piano)

VOX SVBX 5009

Austrian pianist Friedrich Wührer’s recording of the last Schubert sonata, D960 – which of course has been recorded hundreds of times since – is a really beautiful testament to Wührer’s link to the old school of Austrian musicianship. When people play Schubert’s last sonata they’re obsessed with the idea that it’s his last, and there’s almost a kind of morbidity about it. Wührer’s recording is much more ambiguous in the sense that it also fully takes advantage of all the joyous moments and the sprightly turns of phrase.

Ivan Ili´c’s second volume of music by Antoine Reicha is out now on Chandos Records.