Although we admire many artists from Asia, the awkward position of Idil Biret's native country of Turkey, lying as it does culturally between Europe and the Middle East, has perhaps militated against her becoming more widely known, although she made a deserved reputation as long ago as the 1950s. At any rate, she is an able Paris-trained pianist and former Cortot pupil who brings a sense of drama and timing to these two concertos Saint-Saens concertos and has the technique to meet their many challenges to a soloist's dexterity.
Of course there's more to technique than that, and I find something a bit stiff rhythmically and tonally about the introductory cadenza and slower music with orchestra which together begin the G minor Concerto, and indeed about this big opening movement generally, which is unusually an Andante sostenuto. Other pianists find more poetry and charm here and more joie de vivre too in the Allegro scherzando that follows. But having said that, there's much to enjoy in this work and in the somewhat longer Fourth Concerto, which has four movements where No. 2 has three, though here too the Allegro vivace second movement could sparkle more.
These are assured performances with firm orchestral support from James Loughran and the Philharmonia, and are well recorded although the piano sound is not very refined. Readers wanting this coupling and attracted by the bargain price need not hesitate.'