Isabel Beyer and Harvey Dagul – a husband-and-wife team – have been playing piano duets together for over 40 years. As with their earlier discs their experience as a partnership shines through every bar. Throughout they sound as one: there is complete unanimity of interpretative definition, of detail and balance, and the ensemble is impeccable. Elsewhere, with partnerships of more ‘starry’ soloists, you may find a greater surface gloss, but Beyer and Dagul somehow capture the true spirit of enjoyment and intimate music-making inherent in piano duets.
Dvorak’s Legends, like his Slavonic Dances, were originally written for piano duet before being orchestrated. To me, however, the piano duet version sounds like an intermediate stage of composition. Dvorak was certainly not the most imaginative or adventurous of piano composers, and I can’t help feeling that the piano duet is not the happiest medium for these pieces. They are very well played, but the rather congested writing, which lacks textural variety and is too confined to the middle range of the keyboard, becomes a little monotonous after 40 minutes.
The highlight of the disc is the collection of six character sketches by Moritz Moszkowski. This recording is the first of a promised series exploring Moszkowski’s many piano duets, with each disc being coupled with piano duets by some of his contemporaries. Aus aller Herren Landern reveals Moszkowski’s unfailingly idiomatic pianism: the writing is imaginative and never becomes stereotyped. Whether in the jota of “Spain”, the irresistible tarantella of “Italy” or the colourful allusion to gipsy violins in “Hungary”, these pieces are charming and played with an infectious enthusiasm. This disc is worth hearing just for this delightful set.'