For Schumann there were ‘no half measures in Bach; everything was written for all time’. Composed in 1845, his Op 56 Studies confirmed his love. Intriguingly written for three hands, they show Schumann breaking away from his model and inspiration to become entirely himself. The solemn and processional tread of No 6 is pure Schumann, but how strange to note in the foot-stamping drama of No 5 a passing resemblance to Liszt’s Niobe Fantasy (1837) and music by a composer who, for cautious Clara, had ‘too much of the tinsel and the drum’. Fugal and canonic tendencies are also present in the ever-glorious Piano Quintet, both works confirming a husband-and-wife team immersed in the musical complexities of the past.

Winter & Winter’s most enlivening disc makes you aware of how the fortepiano can add its own special zest and character to the proceedings, clarifying even the thickest or most awkward textures. This is particularly true in the Quintet’s bounding Scherzo, a game of tag where one phrase is made to leap towards another with undiminished energy. And even if you turn to Martha Argerich and her friends on an live EMI recording (A/02) for a surpassing brilliance and subtlety, this new performance both provides special insights and makes a valuable addition to the catalogue.