It’s a measure of the international standing of Barber that, a year after his centenary, a British pianist has come up with an outstanding release, and against plenty of competition. Pianists line up to play Barber’s demanding Sonata, possibly because it was written for the legendary Horowitz, much as actors clamour to play Hamlet. McCawley takes the first movement slower than some pianists but he makes its points intelligently rather than resorting to a kind of non-stop pyrotechnical display. The Scherzo sparkles; the Adagio is impeccably paced through its anguished climax; and McCawley makes light of the difficulties of the final fugue as its catchy subject is put through its manic paces.

Souvenirs, with its light-hearted glances at various popular idioms, is a sheer delight, and so are the four Excursions dipping into jazz/blues/country in Barber’s own way. Less well known are the Three Sketches written in Barber’s teens and the Two Interludes – and only the first is included by McCawley’s immediate competitor, Daniel Pollack (Naxos, 7/99). These stem from late Brahms but McCawley makes a convincing case for both of them.

Then there’s the Nocturne (Homage to John Field) and the late Ballade, its opening common chords apparently expressing tranquillity but reflecting the isolation of Barber’s sad final years in its dramatic central section.

McCawley delivers everything magnificently; he scores over the Pollack release with better piano sound; and there are booklet-notes from Pierre Brévignon, who started the Capricorn Society in France and whose Barber biography will appear this autumn. This is now the CD to get of Barber’s piano music.