Piano Duo Genova & Dimitrov - French Concertos For Two Pianos (2004)

Filled with French esprit, audaciously inventive in their spectacular piano parts, overflowing with catchy melodies, and vividly orchestrated, the double concertos on this 2004 CPO release are remarkable vehicles that every virtuoso piano duo should explore; and Aglika Genova and Liuben Dimitrov serve them up with all the brilliance and panache needed to bring these works proper recognition. Poulenc's Concerto in D minor for two pianos and orchestra is the best known of the three, a neo-Classical tour de force that sparkles with Parisian wit but evokes Mozart in many passages, most openly in the Larghetto. Milhaud's Concerto for two pianos and orchestra is quirkier, with numerous references to the music hall and street processions, and its abundant polytonal dissonances make it the spiciest piece on the disc. The Concerto for two pianos and orchestra by Robert Casadesus is, perhaps unsurprisingly, deeply influenced by Ravel in its effervescent orchestration, but the solo piano part has some of the same popular inflections found in Milhaud. The SWR Rundfunkorchester Kaiserslautern, directed by Alun Francis, provides splendid accompaniment in all three performances, and Genova and Dimitrov are exceptionally coordinated and expressively attuned. CPO offers terrific sound.