Of the several period-instrument contenders in this field, no one had impressed me more than the vividly responsive Lambert Orkis (Virgin, 9/92—now only available on cassette). Now along comes Peter Katin, a comparatively recent convert, who in his own way is no less enjoyable. As in his last recording of Clementi sonatas (Athene, 12/93), he uses a six-octave square piano made in London by the firm of Muzio Clementi & Co. about four years after Schubert's death. Again Katin chose to record in his own music-room rather than some more orthodox larger venue. So to begin with there is an intimacy in the scale and quality of the sound itself. Shut your eyes, and you could be sitting around the piano at a Schubertiad, melted by yet fresh wonders from the composer's own hands.
In his insert-notes, Katin explains how entering an authentic Schubert sound-world, after a lifetime spent with modern instruments, surreptitiously changed the nature of his interpretation. That I certainly noticed in many small subtleties of 'voicing' as also in phrasing more spontaneously personal than any I can recall from him. For some tastes his pliancy might at times seem excessive. But his point-making is not self-consciously obtrusive. Everything is done with a disarming simplicity of flow. I would only question his reinstatement of a repeat (I think wisely omitted by the publisher, Diabelli) in the course of D935 No. 1 in F minor, making its gently rocking central duetting disproportionately long. I enjoyed the instrument itself first and foremost for its ability to sing so beautifully with such tellingly contrasted voices. Katin also draws bewitching sound from its treble in Schubert's rippling or cascading semiquavers. Now and again at moments of climax you may notice a lack of tonal penetration right up at the top, when balance is briefly disturbed by its stronger bass. But that is of no great consequence. Listeners with perfect pitch should nevertheless be forewarned of its 'period' tuning, so that everything emerges just a semitone lower than the printed keys as we more usually hear them today.'