German pianist
Annette Töpel has made a practice of recording the obscure works of major composers, as demonstrated on her recordings for Musicaphon of "unknown" music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Ludwig van Beethoven, and, with this 2008 release, Franz Schubert. Aside from the Scherzo No. 1 in B flat major, D. 593/1, which gets programmed with some regularity on recitals and recordings, the rest of the album really is unfamiliar territory with examples of juvenilia, short dance pieces, and posthumous publications that hardly anyone plays, let alone with distinction. Since
Töpel renders these minor works with considerable feeling and elegance, this disc is quite enjoyable and may satisfy some Schubert completists for whom even the smallest fragment yields delight. But most other listeners will find that the three minuets, the Hungarian Melody, the Andante in C major, and the March in E major are pleasant enough but too light to make this collection essential listening. While the youthful Fantasie in C minor, D. 2E (which receives its premiere recording here), the Rondo in E major, D. 506, and the Ten Variations in F major, D. 156, are the most substantial pieces here and welcome for their charm, they are not as memorable as Schubert's great works, and when compared with the Impromptus or the Moments Musicaux, they are much less interesting and satsifying. The recording is clear and reasonably close-up, but the sound of the Schimmel-Flügel piano is on the brittle side and not especially warm.