Mozart: Piano Concertos No.20-22, Piano Quartet No.1, Fantasy in C minor, Masonic Funeral Music
Leif Ove Andsnes / Mahler Chamber Orchestra (Sony)
(scroll down for English review)
安斯涅斯繼貝多芬鋼琴協奏曲全集後，再和馬勒室樂團合作大規模計劃，這次的主題是1785年的莫扎特，這張雙碟是第一輯，明年會推出第二輯雙碟，應該就是1786年。其實席夫幾年前曾以1784年莫扎特為主題，排出最多三場的音樂會，主軸為該年創作的六首鋼琴協奏曲（第14至19），以同年寫的小提琴奏鳴曲、鋼琴奏鳴曲及弦樂四重奏為副。安斯涅斯這次也差不多，鋼琴協奏曲是第20至22。
鋼琴協奏曲，我分開鋼琴及樂隊來談。樂隊這部分確實傑出，奏得有血有肉，並非以伴奏為定位，而是和鋼琴結合成像交響曲的編制。至於安斯涅斯的鋼琴我則有點保留，我喜歡的是他結實的觸鍵，不會像一些鋼琴家誤以為想把莫扎特彈得輕巧，就一定要削掉所有敲擊感覺。當然安斯涅斯的結實不會太粗，而且他也有能力彈出既音符分明又綿延的連奏。
但我不喜歡的是當音符開始變密，他就開始追求平滑的觸感，單以琴音來說這不算問題，問題是這些地方往往是音樂走入不安、不協和的時候，他這樣彈，我覺得彈不出箇中的張力。不過，愈是簡單的句子，安斯涅斯的分明琴音又會回來，所以協奏曲中的慢板還是不錯的。
配搭的曲目包括《第一鋼琴四重奏》（軌八至十），其實也可當成縮寫版的協奏曲來聽，於是安斯涅斯的方法也差不多，其餘三支弦樂由樂團的樂手擔任，其中中提琴是經常來港演出的Joel Hunter，不過三人的投入我覺得不足夠。軌七《C小調幻想曲》是莫扎特在奏鳴曲以外的重要鋼琴獨奏作品，對貝多芬影響頗深，不過這個演奏我就會以負面的不慍不火來形容，彈不出悲憤及希望之間的激盪。我並非說他彈得不好，只是覺得他這套錄音未足以奠定他作為跨時代的大師。
After “Beethoven Journey” Leif Ove Andsnes started another major project with the Mahler Chamber Orchestra “Mozart Momentum”. This first installment is on the three piano concertos written in 1785. There will be another double disc next year, which will probably include the three concertos of 1786.
I have no doubts on the orchestral playing, Andsnes didn’t set down the Mahler Chamber Orchestra as his accompanying players. Instead they played with intensity and together with the solo piano the whole often sounded like a symphony.
As for Andsnes’ piano, I took note of his solid articulation. I never buy the assumption of a hammerless piano in Mozart playing. Andsnes made each note of a simple melody count and he could sustain a legato very well. What I felt uncomfortable was his playing of the passages, in those moments he’d aim for a silky string of notes. The problem with that approach was that those moments were often restless or dissonant in nature, so to me Andsnes robbed the music of its tension. The adagios, with their simpler lines, were all played exquisitely.
The fillers included the First Piano Quartet (tracks 8-10) that might be listened as a concerto with chamber forces, so my view of Andsnes on this work remained the same. The three strings were from the orchestra, but I think they should have given more. The C minor Fantasy (track 7) is a refutation that Mozart was always the happy-go-lucky simpleton with no anguish. Andsnes played it so tamely that the oscillations between hope and despair failed to get through. It’s not that Andsnes performed Mozart badly; it’s just that these recordings wouldn’t establish him on the ranks of piano gods.