Rachmaninov: The Two-Piano Suites, Six Morceaux – Charles Owen

   in Piano International (Jan, 2018)
It’s good to see these performances on disc: live accounts by this duo at Milton Court and the London Piano Festival have already confirmed their fine grasp of this repertoire.

Another UK-based pairing, Donohoe and Roscoe, is a direct challenge in the Suites. Yet there is certainly more of a feeling of a regular partnership with Owen and Apikisheva, and Avie’s recording is superior. The Barcarolle that opens the First Suite, inspired by Lermontov, spins its web hypnotically on Avie. These pianists achieve glistening clarity, presented in superb sound; the sense of flow is easier and more fluent than Donohoe/Roscoe and more directional than either the Argerich/Baldocci and Argerich/Rabinovich versions. One …