Amandine Savary BACH Toccatas

Having previously distinguished herself on disc as a chamber music collaborator, the young French pianist Amandine Savary makes her CD solo debut with Bach’s Toccatas. It was a good idea to do so, not only in that the catalog contains relatively few piano versions of all seven works (as opposed to a gazillion-and-one piano Goldberg Variations), but also because Savary plays superbly. 

Savary may not match Angela Hewitt’s refinement of articulation in the fugues or Stepan Simonian’s bravura, yet there’s something to be said for her lighter, more scampering treatment of the G minor’s first upbeat episode (measure 18), or her gentle easing into the D major and E minor Toccatas’ introductions. Her brisk and pliable sweep through the D major’s fugal finale minimizes the music’s tendency to ramble in lesser hands. The F-sharp minor’s slow interlude transpires with lilting delicacy, in contrast to the D minor fugue’s zestful drive. My only quibble is that the C minor’s central fugue slows down slightly as it progresses, with the textures becoming less transparent in turn. That aside, Savary’s inherent musicality and elegance leave a largely positive impression, and her well-regulated Yamaha CFX Concert Grand is vibrantly reproduced. Well worth hearing. (Jed Distler)