Hyperion's new recording with Marc-Andre Hamelin of Alkan's extraordinary Grande sonate makes a most timely appearance. The work, subtitled ''The four ages'', is an extraordinary piece in many respects, not least in its rather unconventional layout of four movements, each employing progressively slower tempos. Perhaps for this reason it has never attained a place in the repertoire – the Extremement lent finale is hardly the sort of movement to ignite an overwhelming response from an audience at the close of the sonata, despite the feats of hair-raising bravura required in the first two movements. As we might expect, Hamelin's performance is everything one could wish for. The crispness and precision of his finger-work in the dazzling first movement (Alkan's portrait of the man in his twenties) is quite breathtaking and the sometimes superhuman feats of pianism demanded in the Faust-inspired second movement are executed with astounding ease. His reading of the third movement (Alkan's imagined picture of domestic bliss) is beautifully poised and charmingly rendered whilst the tragic, Promethean finale is most effectively and powerfully projected, though it should be noted that here Hamelin is no less than 2'46'' faster than Ronald Smith, whose reading is perhaps closer to Alkan's written tempo indication of Extremement lent.
The Sonatine, Op. 61 is an entirely different matter, ''concise and concentrated in the extreme'' is how Francois Luguenot describes it in his informative booklet-note. Hamelin's direct, finely articulated no-nonsense reading brings out the clarity and economy of the writing, and he is quick, too, to underscore the work's more classical stance. A beautifully serene and hypnotic account of the seductive ''Barcarolle'' follows, and the disc closes with a stunning display of pianistic gymnastics in the shape of ''Le festin d'Esope'' from the Op. 39 Etudes. Recorded sound is excellent. Another Hyperion/Hamelin must.'