Mozart - Piano Concertos Nos 25 & 26

The Guardian 80

Francesco Piemontesi (piano), Scottish Chamber Orchestra/Manze
(Linn)

The Swiss pianist Francesco Piemontesi, a one-time pupil of Alfred Brendel, has become a Mozartian to cherish. It’s hard to fault his sense of line, structure and deft approach to detail in these two concertos from Mozart’s Vienna period, the joyous “Coronation”, K537 in D major (No 26) and the grand C major K503 (No 25). Yet Piemontesi’s polished playing is alert with exactly the kind of spontaneity essential to great Mozart performance. Lithe and without fuss, the Scottish Chamber Orchestra makes clear from the opening bars that this is historically informed Mozart with an updated feel. Andrew Manze, one of the most versatile musicians around, is the perceptive conductor.