Howard Shelley has been on a winning streak with his Mendelssohn odyssey and the penultimate volume lives up to previous ones in every respect. There are a directness, selflessness and unaffected authority to the playing that place the bar high for all future Mendelssohn intégrales.

With three sets of variations as the pillars, the generous programme for Vol 5 brings together favourites and obscurities. While the E flat and B flat variations are no match for the masterful Variations sérieuses, they still abound in Mendelssohn’s signature charm and elegance. Shelley brings a noble, almost Brahmsian grace to both works, losing no opportunity to inflect the rich textures; hear, for example, the velvety singing voice against the trickling accompaniment in the first variation of the B flat set. Horowitz (various labels), Larrocha (Decca, 6/70) and Perahia (Sony, 5/85) – the Mount Rushmore of Variations sérieuses interpreters – remain intact but Shelley’s combination of flow and poetic vulnerability makes him a serious contender for a place beside them.

In the category of lesser-knowns are hidden gems such as the posthumously published Three Preludes, Op 104a, and their sister set of Three Studies, Op 104b. From the funky wit of the first Prelude to the Schumannesque third Study, these pieces offer any Mendelssohn crusader valid arguments against his branding as a mere purveyor of comfortable salon music. Shelley tastefully blends élan with a touch of Romantic angst in these miniatures. He makes a strong case, too, for the six Kinderstücke (subtitled Christmas Pieces) without ever trying to oversell these delightful bonbons as rivals to Schumann’s more famous Kinderszenen. Shelley’s beautifully layered delivery of these and other self-standing miniatures, such as the Gondellied, is a masterclass in voicing and pedalling. Only occasionally, in Book 6 of the Songs without Words, did I long for a light dusting of nostalgia to enrich his charming storytelling – Kozhukhin (Pentatone, 9/19) is unsurpassed for that.

Hyperion’s recording quality is warm yet clear, and it would be hard to imagine more informative or authoritative notes than those supplied by R Larry Todd. The final volume is eagerly anticipated.