Few of Enescu’s smaller works are repertoire items outside his native Romania. It’s often forgotten that he was a celebrated violin virtuoso (Menuhin was a pupil) and wrote a number of beautifully crafted and challenging pieces in the decades either side of 1900. This new recording collects many of these to provide a fine portrait of a composer still evolving to full maturity.

The music’s expressive range is broad, from the intimate (eg the ‘Pavane’ from the Second Piano Suite – no room, alas, for the whole work – and Ballade) to the dramatic (the Konzertstück and Légende) to the charming (Cantabile and Presto of 1904) and exuberant (the Saltarello and 1895 Tarantelle). Enescu’s instrumental knowledge informed much of his solo writing, especially for the works for strings which form the majority here. Most of the programme consists of duos but three ensemble miniatures feature: the pretty if slightly flimsy Aubade for string trio (1899) and Pastorale, Menuet triste et Nocturne for violin and piano duet (1900), as well as the fine Sérénade lointaine for piano trio (1903).

The performances are warm and sympathetic throughout, underpinned by Claudia Bara’s sensitive playing (she is preparing a recital of Enescu piano works for EMI, I gather). In the ‘Pavane’ she is a match for Borac (Avie, 11/03) although appreciably slower; pace is leisurely, too, in the Légende (1906) compared to, say, Hardenberger and Andsnes (EMI, A/99). The instrumental soloists all acquit themselves with aplomb, not least cellist Justus Grimm and flautist Vincent Lucas, although the performance I admired most was Gérard Caussé’s of the viola Konzertstück (1906). Nicely balanced, warm sound in a natural acoustic.