It's not particularly often that we find symphonic and chamber works together on one disc, but no one need complain when they are from Franck's wonderful late maturity and the disc lasts nearly 80 minutes. Apart from the composer, the main unifying feature here is Pascal Roge, who proves himself to be inside Franck's music, whether as a soloist in the Symphonic Variations or playing the taxing piano parts of the two other pieces.
He has recorded the Symphonic Variations before, with Lorin Maazel and the Cleveland Orchestra (Decca, 4/77—nla), and that account showed that already he brought sensitivity and intelligence to this music, though some people found the playing a trifle reticent. The reticence—if that is the word—is still there today in the quiet introductory dialogue with the orchestra, where he avoids the winsomeness to which the word espressivo prompts some pianists and instead plays the music very straight. But there's no lack of shape and poise in what follows, and although the piano tone and tuning seem raw in the big solo beginning at 1'56'' this performance is one to enjoy. Nevertheless, its gravity and tendency to slowish tempos bring a certain loss of spontaneity and sparkle, even in the quicker Allegro non troppo music beginning three-quarters of the way through the work at 12'08''.
Arguably, Roge's seriousness is more suited to the two other works. But while in the Violin Sonata transcription Ross Pople shows himself as a skilful artist, his playing does not offer the radiance and urgency that other artists such as Jacqueline Du Pre (EMI) have brought to this music and Franck's markings of con fantasia and drammatico in the beautiful third movement go unrealized. In fact, the performance is short of eloquence, and the recording (not least of the piano) is also disappointing, lacking the depth and tonal bloom that the music demands. I like the Piano Quintet better, for it conveys far more Franckian passion even if the Lento, con molto sentimento is less than magical and the players slow down excessively for the Ritenuto un pochet- tino il tempo at 7'15'' in the finale. But here, too, the recording is not ideal: pianissimos are substantial, violin tone is wiry, and in some big passages the piano is clangorous.'