Search - Ludwig van Beethoven, Franz [Vienna] Schubert, Andreas Haefliger :: Perspectives 3

A rising pianist who plays with more force than style

Santa Fe Listener | Santa Fe, NM USA | 09/29/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Under the rubric of "Perspectives," the young Swiss pianist Andreas Haefliger (son of the noted tenor Ernst Haefliger) feels free to combine from two to four diverse composers. Here it's Beethoven and Schubert, as follows:

Beethoven:

Piano Sonata No. 15 in D major, Op. 28 'Pastorale'



Piano Sonata No. 23 in F minor, Op. 57 'Appassionata'



Schubert:

Piano Sonata No. 21 in B flat major, D960





It could be foolhardy to pair Beethoven's greatest middle-period sonata with Schubdrt's greatest posthumous sonata, and even as well as Haefliger plays both, I'm not sure I want to hear them in a row. As a stylist, Haefliger falls on the unpoetic side, making his effects through direct phrasing, a fairly heavy touch, and flashes of virtuositiy when he needs to pep things up. He can be impressive in concert, but a blunt, direct "Appassionata" isn't what the world is exactly waiting for.



The Schubert B flat Sonata also begins without poetry, but at least Haefliger doesn't mince words. He knows how to assemble a reading and put it across. Happily, he's at his gentlest and most lyrical in the sublime slow movement, which he takes faster than usual -- that's better than mawkish dawdling. He seems most comfortable in the straight-ahead scherzo and finale, although one could wish for more wit and high spirits. As you no doubt can tell, I respect Haefliger more than love him, but he has won quite a lot of criticial acclaim in the past few years."