Yevgeny Sudbin - Scarlatti: 18 Sonatas (2016)

The pianist Yevgeny Sudbin here returns to the music of Domenico Scarlatti, ten years after his first Scarlatti recording in 2005 (which was also his first recording for Sweden's BIS label). Once again he offers heavily pianistic re-imaginations of the music, akin to the approach pioneered by the pianist who first popularized these sonatas, Vladimir Horowitz. There is little concession to the sound the music would have had if it were played on a harpsichord, and in fact, here in his booklet notes, which are just about worth the price of admission by themselves, Sudbin even likens playing the sonatas on the piano to the act of transcribing them. Indeed, the capabilities of one instrument are substituted for those of another. The slow minor-key sonatas, with their tempo rubato and their pedal usage, are in a Chopin mode, and Sudbin takes a good deal of liberty with tempo and ornamentation in the repeats. Sample the Keyboard Sonata in D minor, K. 213 (track 5), or any of the other minor-key sonatas for a taste. Sudbin balances these with brilliant, fast contrapuntal pieces that take the curves quickly; the relationship between harpsichord and guitar is lost, but there's no question that he's exciting to hear at high speeds and keeps everything clear. If you're in the market for extremely pianistic Scarlatti, Sudbin's unpacks the remarkable dissonances and idiosyncratic structures of the slow sonatas especially well. -- James Manheim