A reminder. Andrey Gugnin is a 38-year-old Russian pianist whose virtuosity is of a lightness and charm known to very few. Whether in Tchaikovsky/Pletnev, Stravinsky, or Stravinsky-Agosti his playing has a precision and elegance that free him to characterise each ballet recreation with an ease that makes you temporarily forget the original scores; also, the heavy demands involved.
Opening with 'The Nutcracker Suite' he steps out proudly 'tempo de marcia viva' in the opening march, is as delicate and precise s you could wish-- and not without a twinkle in his eye-- in 'Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy' and could hardly be more 'molto vivace' in the 'Trepak.' The same virtues characterise to an even greater extent in The Sleeping Beauty Concert Suite; effortless and resourceful at every level.
Even with legendary recordings of Stravinsky's own transcription of 'Petrushka', notably by Gilels(including two extra movements) and Pollini, Gugnin comes into his own with a tonal transparency that changes what can so easily become a virtuoso rampage into sheer magic. The Three Movement Suite was famously composed for Artur Rubinstein who gave the first performance. He also played it on many occasions and although there is no commercial recording it is rumoured that RCA have one tucked away in their archives Why this has not been released remains a mystery.
Finally, to Guido Agosti's 1928 transcription of The Firebird Suite, dedicated to Busoni and given by Gugnin in a performance as evocative as it is dextrous Hyperion's sound is superb and they include a short essay by Gugnin defending these transcriptions as 'worthy musical works in their own right.' This is a delectable record and I long to hear Gugnin in mainstream repertoire as well as in his more off-beat offerings; these include magnificent discs of the Shostakovich ultra-demanding Sonatas and the complete Scriabin Mazurkas.
Bryce Morrison