Virtuoso Scarlatti
Here's an unequivocal statement: this is the best single disc of  Scarlatti sonatas currently available. Igor Kipnis is a tremendous virtuoso,  able to get through the most difficult of  these pieces unscathed. He also has  unsurpassed insight into the music. The way he embellishes the repeats (all of  which he takes, thank goodness) adds great variety and perspective to the music.  Each piece always has its own character. He plays here on a variety of fine- sounding harpsichords, and uses Ralph Kirkpatrick's pairings to keep related  sonatas together. The engineering--by Kipnis's son Jeremy--is similarly  satisfying.--Leslie Gerber