Pno Sons 2/3/Mazurkas 1-51

In this double CD we find distinguished treasures. The second Sonata is admirably phrased, with refinement and careful treatment of the thematic material. If Benedetti Michelangeli in 1957 gave us the most striking version of this Op. Francois delights us with his sublime and idiosyncratic approach. The Third Sonata lacks a certain dramatic level or existential tension respect let' s say Lipatti or Kapell performances, but it still remains among the top ten achievements ever recorded.

The jewel of the crown are the whole set of Mazurkas. Since the times of Arthur Rubinstein we had not the chance to listen such admirable and charming miniature pieces, so well articulated and played. Francois confers them a zealous and particular distinction. He really makes these mazurkas breath and glow, with that astonishing grandeur touch. Since the moment I listened I was trapped and engaged due its bewitch and sublime artistic conviction

Don' t hesitate just for a second at the moment to acquire this record. You well deserve this radiant gem.

While there are better performances of a subset of the Mazurkas available by artists such as Sofronitsky and Friedman, this may well be the best complete set that is currently available. It is certainly, to my mind at least, preferable to the overrated and rather dull collection from Rubinstein. However, the Sonatas included here are not nearly as good. You would do much better with Cziffra, or Argerich in #3.

These recordings were made in 1957 (Mazurkas, mono) and 1965 (Sonatas, stereo). The recorded sound is far short of remarkable even for its time, so expect to have to adjust to its antique quality.

François's rendition of the two sonatas is respectable, but nothing here is remarkable one way or the other. The chief interest for most will be the mazurkas. The artist plays with color and imagination. In my judgment, however, his approach yields mixed results. There's the occasional old-school romantic exaggeration that may be off-putting to some contemporary listeners. That aside, in general François tends to smooth over these pieces' natural accentual gravitation to the second or third beats. While too much emphasis on this intrinsic quality can come off as mannered and cloying, in the hands of François some of the mazurkas sound more like waltzes. A couple or three of them, on the other hand, he plays with a kind of mechanical military precision that is intriguing (e.g., op. 6 no. 3, op. 7 no. 2), but to my ears finally comes across as unsuitable to the music.

On the other hand, there's nothing lackluster here. Occasionally this artist's interpretation yields fine results. His op. 7 no. 1 is one of the most spontaneous-sounding I've ever heard. Here François lets the music speak for itself. Mostly, I find his performance at best controversial and at worst foreign to the genre, a western-European remake of the eastern-European original.

Those who desire completeness should also note that this recording isn't complete.

While there's probably no single completely satisfactory comprehensive recording of Chopin's Mazurkas, my hands-down choice, if I could keep just one, would be Garrick Ohlsson's. I'm glad to have this one as a supplement, because it really helps one hone one's thinking about what makes for a successful rendition of a Chopin mazurka. If the recorded sound were better, I might be tempted to give it four stars, for there's never a dull moment, and tastes vary. As it is, I deem it worthy of only three.