Nikolai Medtner (1880-1951)
Springtime Toils: Complete Piano Music Vol III
2 Skazki Op. 20
4 Skazki Op. 26 Nos 1-2 and 4
Forgotten Melodies Cycle II Op. 39
3 Hymns in Praise of Toil Op. 49
Thomas Ang (piano)
rec. 2023, London
Private Release [52]

My first thought listening to the ungainly fourth of Medtner’s Skazki Op. 26 with which this disc opens was a fear that the bubble had burst on Thomas Ang’s superb Medtner series (Volume 1 ~ Volume 2). Of course, I needn’t have worried. As soon as the first notes of the second cycle of Forgotten Melodies rippled out from under Ang’s fingers, I knew I was in for something special and, in lots of ways, this may be the best so far. There is a swagger and freedom to the music making on this third volume that eclipses even the heights achieved in the first two. The programme forms an ideal introduction to both Ang’s series and to the magical world of Medtner’s piano music.

Skazki translates as a fairytale and a sense of magical storytelling informs most of the works selected. If Medtner’s imagination is always subtly understated, it is never lacking in breadth and depth. The range of pianistic effect is astonishing without ever reaching for the sensationalism of a Prokofiev or a Liszt. On the surface his music looks like the ultimate thankless task – immense difficulty without creating much in the way of a wow factor – but in Ang’s hands the colours are as vibrant as a richly illustrated book of folk tales.

There is a risk that this undersells the brilliance of Ang’s finger work. His sensitivity to the unique mood and atmosphere of Medtner’s work is as much in evidence as in previous volumes but his virtuosity has never glittered so extravagantly. The second of the Op. 26 Skazki sounds like the kind of piece Horowitz might have offered as an encore and the performance here lives up to the comparison. Even more remarkably Ang’s feats of pianistic wonderment never overstep the limits of Medtner’s elusive sound world. Everything is held in consummate balance and if this volume shows us more of Ang the Showman, he is always first and foremost Ang the Musician.

The one substantial item in this volume is the Sonata Tragica which confusingly is both Medtner’s eleventh piano sonata and the final section of the second cycle of Forgotten Melodies. The only issue with this ferocious work is that it isn’t especially tragic – furious might be a better term. Ang plays it with no holds barred and it is tremendously exciting and a total contrast from the rest of the music on the disc.

The Three Hymns in Praise of Toil bely their somewhat ungainly title – banish all thoughts of Soviet three year plans and think more of God’s works – to present gently poetic works that only occasionally erupt into the extravagances of the Skazki or the Forgotten Melodies. Toil perhaps for the pianist but not for the listener.

As often happens, emerging recording cycles gather energy and excitement as they go on and that is abundantly in evidence on this third volume. This is music making that deserves as wide an audience as possible so please don’t let technology stand in the way of hearing it. The Bandcamp App in particular couldn’t be easier to use though the website is very user friendly too. It also allows one to sample before you buy though I imagine most people sampling will want to buy! Roll on Volume Four!

David McDade

Availability: Bandcamp