Debussy: Preludes 1; L'isle Joyeuse
Maurizio Pollini brings cool elegance and unflappable sheen to Debussy'sPreludes Book One. He contours the dynamics with micromanaged aplomb, and achieves ravishing pedal effects in the more meditative selections. One can't find fault with the pianist's well-oiled fingerwork and beautifully modulated sonority. Yet the music's evocative, dreamlike qualities elude Pollini's protean grasp, especially compared to Arrau's robust inflections, Paul Jacobs's aching poetry, and Zaidee Parkinson's haunting rumination. Pollini dispatches the neo-Lisztian hurdles ofL'Isle Joyeusewith efficient ease, holding himself aloof from the orgiastic abandon characterizing more memorable readings from Jean-Yves Thibaudet, Vladimir Horowitz, and Walter Gieseking. DG's engineering is resplendent and well-focused.--Jed Distler