Brahms on a period piano: black-and-white listening with modern ease

Norman Lebrecht’s Album of the Week praises Andras Schiff’s Brahms late piano cycles (op. 116–119, plus op. 76) on ECM, recorded in the Beethovenhaus Bonn in 2021. Schiff’s playing is poised and authoritative, and the 1859 Blüthner’s woody timbre—slightly “plinkity” at times—gives the music distinctive character. The result is timelessly pleasurable and approachable, even as the instrument’s vintage sound evokes a black-and-white listening mood.