Richard Goode

Anyone who had conveniently classified the American pianist Richard Goode among the Steinway baroqueurs on the basis of his reasonably acclaimed Bach recordings a few years ago at Nonesuch will certainly have a sore eyebrow after the man's maiden trip to the Handelsbeurs. After all, Goode is an impressive, if reserved, romantic, as some recall from a memorable performance of Schumann's Davidsbündlertänze that he gave during a previous tour of our country.

This time Schumann again, namely with his second keyboard sonata. A piece of unrest in the best Schumannian tradition, with a tempo problem famous for the performer, which amounts to interactivity avant la lettre. “So rasch wie möglich” (as fast as possible) Robert writes at one point as an indication of the tempo. A little further on it says: “noch rascher”. Consternation with the pianist on duty. But Goode certainly comes up with an elegant solution.

An unprecedented counterpoint to this sonata is the second book Préludes by Debussy, who, as is known, prefers to express himself in possibilities rather than in impossibilities.

Unknown duck in the bite is Robert Helps (1928-2001), whose tribute to Fauré (1845-1924) is strikingly combined by Goode with the sixth nocturne of the French late romantic.