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HAYDN: Piano Sonatas XI:5, XV:3, 18-20, 44-46; Capriccio; Variations Zoltan Kocsis Hungaroton 11618 (Qualiton) [2CD] 126 minutes XVI:20, 50, 52; Variations Mikhail Pletnev--Virgin 45254 (EMI) 67 minutes Piano Concertos (3) Mikhail Pletnev, German Chamber Philharmonic Virgin 45196--61:35
Haydn was an eminently practical man; almost all of his compositions were written either to meet the requirements of his noble patrons (the Esterhazys) or to make money. But there is a group of sonatas written between 1765 and 1770 (including 18, 20, 45, and 46 on the Hungaroton disc) that he kept to himself for a considerable period, perhaps because he regarded them as experimental and unsuitable for his intended audience; the C minor sonata (20) was attached to the set published in 1780, and the rest appeared in 1788--even then probably without Haydn's authorization. They are exceptionally interesting,...