Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Fantasy
Fantasia in C minor, K396/385f
Rondo in A minor, K511
Rondo in F major, K494
Fantasia in D minor, K397/385g
Rondo in D major, K485
Fantasia in C minor, K475
Adagio in B minor, K540
Ismaël Margain (piano)
rec. 2023, Salon de musique de l’hôtel de la Fondation Singer-Polignac, Paris
Naïve V8443 [63]
This is Ismaël Margain’s second project with the Naïve label. Last year I reviewed, with a glowing recommendation, his recording of Chopin and Fauré Impromptus. He now turns his hand to Mozart in a disc entitled ‘Fantasy’. He sets out his stall on what draws him to the composer in an interview contained in the booklet with Pierre-Yves Lascar. It’s “the intensity of his universe, the expressive power he displays, his amazing gift for contrast in addition to the infinitely varied emotions that flow from that …”. What finally spurred him on to record these pieces was a meeting in 2019 with Portuguese pianist Maria João Pires, with whom he worked extensively on this particular repertoire. Rather than record a disc of sonatas, he opted, as in the Chopin and Fauré disc, to embrace the shorter forms; some of these pieces have been in his repertoire for several years.
The opener is a work the pianist didn’t already have in his repertoire and it has since become a firm favorite. It’s the magnificent Fantasia in C minor, K396. It constitutes a fitting curtain raiser to proceedings, beginning with a “Baroque” overture, where dotted rhythms abound and a sense of improvisation informs the narrative. I first came to know it through Alfred Brendel’s recording, and I’m convinced it needs to be performed more often. The other work, new to Margain in this particular context as a stand alone piece, though he was familiar with it as the final movement of the Sonata in F major, K533, is the Rondo in F major, K494. What a charmer it is, playful and childlike in its simplicity. The same qualities I find in the Rondo in D major, K485.
I used to find the Fantasia in C minor, K475 problematic, failing to grasp its logical thread. Now it means much more to me. It’s a work boldly imaginative and of contrasting ideas. There are constantly shifting moods and audacious modulations. The writer Tony Chen Lin writes that this “extraordinary masterpiece unfolds like a Greek tragedy, a hero’s battle with his own inexorable fate, a struggle between life and death”. Margain’s is a boldly persuasive and dramatic account with a compelling logic and a fresh and satisfying sense of purpose.
The Adagio in B minor, K540 is captivatingly expressive, and I read somewhere that Alfred Brendel stated that it’s the greatest piece in all the piano literature. Composed in 1788, its sombre disposition mirrors the struggles of Mozart during that particular year, beset by financial problems and struggling to get commissions. Margain captures the suspense and drama of the work to perfection, bringing his recital to a memorable close.
Margain is graced with an album that’s splendidly recorded. He is one of the most expressive pianists around today and displays strong character throughout, striving constantly for the heart of each piece. In addition, his playing evinces warmth and sensitivity and is nothing short of revelatory. I would strongly urge you to investigate.
Stephen Greenbank
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