Brahms's Piano Quintet is a large-scale, dramatic work, but some of its drama lies in its brooding mystery. The quiet opening of the first movement is a case in point, where the gliding octaves seem simple on the surface but in practice suggest the troubled waters ahead, and Derek Han and the New World Quartet create the right kind of atmosphere, if a little warmer than in some other performances, and then take off naturally into the more vigorous writing that follows. Indeed, everything here flows along in a way that encompasses:058 the varying moods and textures. Most agreeable it is, although I question whether the artists' approach is a bit bland for music which should reveal some stress and pain, and if sometimes they're rather too relaxed. Once or twice, as in the coda, I wondered whether Derek Han felt this and was trying to raise the voltage a little where the piano part gave him the chance. Whatever the case, this is skilful and sensitive playing. However, the gentle Andante, un poco Adagio is a little too brisk to convey the warmth needed at this point, and I wish the artists had paid more heed to Brahms's tempo qualification. Thereafter I have only praise, for the big Scherzo has fire and boldness and the rich yet clear recording does it justice, while the sure handling of the mysterious slow introduction to the finale gives rise to good expectations that are then fulfilled.
A consideration of comparisons reveals a strong field of performances with good recordings to match. If the Quintet were the only factor in my choice, I would go for Ashkenazy and the Cleveland Orchestra Quartet (Decca), for they too offer richness, but are warmer in the Schubertian aspects of the second movement and even more thrillingly dramatic elsewhere; their coupling is Brahms's Clarinet Trio. Peter Frankl and the Lindsay (ASV) take a more sombre view of the work that is pleasing in its own terms. Both their issue and the Naxos/Select disc with Jeno Jando and the Kodaly Quartet offer the sensible and generous coupling of Schumann's Piano Quintet: I like the urgency of this Hungarian performance and at its super-bargain price it is fully recommendable.
However, the present disc is also generously filled, and collectors may be attracted by the coupling of a string quartet that Brahms himself called ''dainty but ingenious''. The first movement is scherzo-like and full of quirky rhythmic invention (a real scherzo comes later), and the whole work with its variation-form finale has warmth and humour—the booklet note talks of ''the Breezy repartee [sic] and witty surprises that are the true hallmarks of the highest classical style''. Here, too, the New World offer affectionate playing that brings out detail without losing shape and style, though the recording does not allow a real pianissimo. Among comparisons in this work, the stylish Melos (DG) only come as part of a full-price three-disc set with Brahms's string quartets and Schumann's as well, and the Budapest's CBS account at mid-price is 25 years old and betrays its age. The Talich from Czechoslovakia, recorded in Paris in 1987, are sunny and spirited: their coupling (Brahms's Clarinet Quintet with Pascal Moragues) may safely determine your choice between their Pyramid/Priory disc and the present issue.'