Haydn: Piano Sonatas

Having given us a really impressive survey of Mozart’s piano sonatas, Bezuidenhout turns his attention to Haydn’s keyboard output—with even greater rewards. The first thing that strikes you here is the sound of his modern Czech copy of an 1805 Anton Walter fortepiano. With a bell-like top, a gorgeous midrange and a rich, twangy bass, it’s ideally suited to this infinitely varied fare. Bezuidenhout celebrates the music's humanity, beauty and wit in a brilliantly compiled programme of two sonatas, a partita and two sets of variations.