In an interview included in the booklet notes, Florian Krumpöck discusses the importance of tone and resonance in relation to the two carefully regulated Bösendorfer grand pianos he uses throughout this all-Chopin release, as well as his passion for bel canto opera. Judging from the G minor Ballade’s amply stretched phrase endings and cadences, Krumpöck revels in the sound of his own singing voice. But his measured and gently lilting tread in the Second Ballade’s lyrical sections convinces, while the agitato passages benefit from the Bösendorfer Imperial Grand’s timbral distinctions between registers.

In the Third Ballade, Krumpöck pays uncommon if slightly rigid heed to the rests in the right hand, and his attention to dynamics lends special impact to the fortissimos. The Fourth Ballade moves in fits and starts. Fussy tempo modifications in the opening measures dissipate the impact of the ritenuto three bars prior to the main theme’s first appearance, as well as impeding the building momentum in bars 100‑128 (starting at 5'15"). On the other hand, the pianist’s metric liberties and imaginative pedalling bring aching poignancy to the hushed imitative episode (7'19") that recalls Claudio Arrau’s similarly evocative Philips recording. The C sharp minor Prelude, Op 45, receives a serious and large-scale reading, where Krumpöck’s full-bodied shaping of the left-hand accompaniment reveals how the music presages Brahms’s Capriccio, Op 76 No 1.

Krumpöck’s volatile and highly contrasted conception of the Second Sonata’s opening movement holds great interest, and listen to how the pianist confidently nails those triplet chord sequences. He happily eschews the unnecessary exposition repeat that most pianists feel compelled to observe these days. The Scherzo’s outer sections alternate between authoritative thrust in the block chords and mincing staccato articulation elsewhere. Although he doesn’t consistently sustain the slow pace he sets for the Funeral March, Krumpöck compensates with gorgeous dynamic gradations in the Trio. The pianist keeps the enigmatic Presto finale’s rapid unison lines on an even keel. He heightens the internal drama by way of his choices in regard to when or when not to use the pedal, saving his sole, dagger-like fortissimo for the final bar, played in strict tempo. Not a first choice for these oft-recorded works, to be sure, but a strong personality emerges from Krumpöck’s best Chopin-playing.