CCMusic.com

This new collection of music for two pianos by Mozart features pianists Ivo Varbanov and Fiammetta Tarli, alongside the English Chamber Orchestra and Muhai Tang. Renowned for their wide-ranging careers as soloist and ensemble players, Varbanov and Tarli present performances of Mozart's Concerto for 2 Pianos and Orchestra K. 365, and Concerto for 2 Pianos and Orchestra K. 242.

Recording in the beautiful Henry Wood Hall in London, Varbanov and Tarli chose to use Steingra¨ber Phoenix pianos, as these magnificent, handcrafted pianos are ideal for performing repertoire requiring extreme finesse and nuance of sound. Apart from their unusual appearance, as they were made in a warm blonde wood colour, the Steingra¨ber Phoenix sounds very different from the usual, bright grand piano. Listeners will find, particularly in the higher register, the sound much more mellow and perhaps a little closer to that of a period instrument. For the two-piano concertos by Mozart of this recording the result is striking: thanks to the less aggressive tone, many more details of Mozart's experimental two-piano writing come to the fore.