Artist: Eric Lu
Album: Schubert: Piano Sonatas D. 784 & 959
Genre: Classical
Release Date: 2022
Audio Format:: FLAC (tracks) 24 bit, 96 kHz
Duration: 01:20:03
Total Tracks: 8
Total Size: 1,20 GB

Tracklist:

1-01. Eric Lu – Piano Sonata No. 20 in A Major, D. 959: I. Allegro (18:25)
1-02. Eric Lu – Piano Sonata No. 20 in A Major, D. 959: II. Andantino (09:29)
1-03. Eric Lu – Piano Sonata No. 20 in A Major, D. 959: III. Scherzo (Allegro vivace) – Trio (Un poco più lento) (05:58)
1-04. Eric Lu – Piano Sonata No. 20 in A Major, D. 959: IV. Rondo (Allegretto) (13:58)
1-05. Eric Lu – Allegretto in C Minor, D. 915 (06:16)
1-06. Eric Lu – Piano Sonata No. 14 in A Minor, Op. posth. 143, D. 784 “Grande Sonate”: I. Allegro giusto (15:12)
1-07. Eric Lu – Piano Sonata No. 14 in A Minor, Op. posth. 143, D. 784 “Grande Sonate”: II. Andante (04:44)
1-08. Eric Lu – Piano Sonata No. 14 in A Minor, Op. posth. 143, D. 784 “Grande Sonate”: III. Allegro vivace (05:59)

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Lu’s album of Schubert pairs two of his greatest sonatas – D 784 in A minor, written in 1823, and D 959 in A major, written in 1828, the last year of the composer’s short life; complementing them is the Allegretto in C minor D 915, dating from 1827.Pianist Eric Lu has been the talk of Britain, with a win at the Leeds International Piano Competition and a highly praised Wigmore Hall debut, not to mention a concert with the 91-year-old Alfred Brendel (who read poetry). With this Warner Classics release, his sophomore album, he delivers on his promise. Lu faces a great deal of competition in the two Schubert piano sonatas featured here, but he delivers absolutely distinctive interpretations. His Piano Sonata in A major, D. 959, is one of the most deliberate on recordings, clocking in at close to 48 minutes as compared with an average of just over 39. It is a risky strategy for a young pianist, but Lu fills the spaces convincingly, drawing a remarkable variety of textures and timbres from his keyboard. The slow movement is absolutely haunting, with the smallest details unpacked by Lu into meditative mini-discourses. After the little-heard Allegretto in C minor, D. 915, as an entr’acte, Lu offers the Piano Sonata in A minor, D. 784, cut from the same cloth, and by the time the program is over, the listener has the feeling of having been on quite a journey. This release suggests once again that listeners are in the presence of a major artist. – James Manheim