Having recorded the Chopin Etudes aged just 18 (10/13), what could be more natural than the Schumann Concerto at 20? Jan Lisiecki made his Proms debut in 2013 in this very work, together with Pappano and the Santa Cecilia orchestra, and it’s a partnership that audibly works very well. And how good to have the concerto alongside the two wondrous yet still under-recorded concert pieces.

If I hadn’t known the identity of the pianist, I wouldn’t have necessarily guessed that this was a young performer at the keyboard. There’s tremendous maturity in terms of the sweep of the concerto’s opening movement, albeit coupled with an infectious glee (just sample the piano’s re-entry at 5'55"). A sense of exploration permeates all the performances here, too; the first-movement cadenza is particularly imaginative in that regard, while simultaneously sounding utterly natural. And Pappano’s wind soloists are suitably characterful – sample the first oboe (tr 1, 10'22") or the bassoon repartee in the finale (tr 3, 1'00"). Pappano’s experiences in the opera house feed into the mix, too, both dramatically and also in an almost vocal style of phrasing.

They get the right speed for the spirit of the Intermezzo (though Howard Shelley is finer still on Chandos at an unusually fleet tempo), and Lisiecki is graceful without being contrived – which is more than can be said for Angela Hewitt, who seems to be trying too hard. But Pappano does pull things around too freely for my taste at the movement’s climax. Alexander Melnikov’s recent version on period instruments is particularly beguiling in this movement. Lisiecki’s finale is also impressive, making enough of the rhythms without overemphasis (try from 6'05" to sample the litheness of the interplay between soloist and orchestra); Pappano and the soloist seem in complete musical accord, giving Perahia and Abbado a run for their money, which is no mean feat.

Perahia sets off at a slightly faster pace in the Introduction to the Konzertstück, Op 92, the Berlin solo horn a thing of beauty. As a consequence, the outline of the theme when taken up by the piano is a shade more natural-sounding than in the hands of Lisiecki or Hewitt. However, the Allegro appassionato section has a real sweep, the interplay between soloist and orchestra again unerring; it’s hard to believe that Lisiecki doesn’t have decades of experience behind him in this regard. Op 134 offers a greater challenge in its mix of fragility and abundant virtuosity: Lisiecki is daring in the quasi-improvisatory quality of the Introduction but Perahia is ultimately the more sure-footed guide. A natural recording captures this imaginative spinner of musical tales to excellent effect. And the disc is rounded out with a touchingly confiding ‘Träumerei’.