Now based in Amsterdam, Nino Gvetadze was born in Tbilisi and trained in her native Georgia before continuing her studies at the conservatories of The Hague and Amsterdam. She won prizes at the 2008 International Franz Liszt Competition and is a recipient of the Borletti-Buitoni Award. Though she already boasts a considerable discography, this was my introduction to her work.

The Arabeske ripples and floats with enviable calm without straining after effect, all the while imparting a delicate sense of longing. The apt voicing of textures is particularly striking. Since Nicholas Angelich’s fine 2016 recording (Erato, 7/16), I don’t know when I’ve enjoyed a Kreisleriana quite so much. Filled with robust contrasts and with exquisitely sculpted phrasing throughout, Gvetadze’s sensitivity to Schumann’s vaunted ‘inner voices’ is unsurpassed.

Despite the myriad challenges of Kreisleriana so successfully met, it may well be that the true heart of this release is Gvetadze’s delicate Kinderszenen. From the unaffected, deeply felt tenderness of ‘Von fremden Ländern und Menschen’ and the fleet, cheerful clarity of ‘Hasche-Mann’, through the subtle dynamics of ‘Wichtige Begebenheit’ or the direct simplicity of ‘Träumerei’, which sounds more sung than played, each piece is a little gem. In addition to Gvetadze’s extraordinarily varied colour palette, much of the naturalness and beauty of her cantabile playing is achieved through expert rhythmic placement. The qualities so amply evident in Kinderszenen also illuminate ‘The Prophet Bird’ and the F sharp major Romance, each a study in understatement.

Gvetadze’s focus is unerring and, if the expressive content of the music is always front and centre, she also has an uncanny ability to elucidate the overall structure with immense subtlety. If you don’t yet know her playing, great pleasures await.