Barry Douglas (piano)Chandos CHAN 10716 ****

The first disc in Barry Douglas's new Brahms series for Chandos jumps around in chronology (from 1879 forward to 1893, back to 1856 and then to 1861) and shows no concern for presenting sets of pieces as a whole. Selectivity is the order of the day. Perhaps Douglas wants to illustrate how concerns of both inwardness and virtuosity permeated Brahms's piano writing at all stages of his career. He certainly has the chops for everything Brahms throws at him in a collection that ends with the demanding Handel Variations, though here he perhaps allows the see-saw effect of the theme to hold too much sway. He's much better when taking an expansive, nuanced approach to shorter pieces, sensitively shaping harmonic tension as well as melodic interest. The pick'n'mix programming is unusual, but has some precedent in the practices of the composer and his favoured interpreters. url.ie/f1f2