For most of the standard repertoire there are far too many recordings; for works such as the Brahms symphonies or Beethoven piano sonatas there are in excess of 50 complete sets available for each; does the world really need still another? For the Haydn piano sonatas the number is much less; and a few notable series on modern piano have garnered important prizes. But the modern piano (all modern pianos are based on a recipe from the 1860s) is a very different animal from any of the keyboard instruments Haydn knew; and so has brought; in sensitive hands; some fine and imaginative yet perhaps quite foreign interpretations of Haydn’s scores. This has led some of us to wish to go back to Haydn’s sound world; to possibly gain a somewhat different access (dare we say a closer one?) to his expressive world.

I last recorded Haydn sonatas in the early 1980s; for Titanic Records (on LP); and although Haydn sonatas always play an essential role in my repertoire I have avoided embarking on a complete recording project because several of my best former students have been involved in such cycles; it seemed only proper to avoid unneccesary duplicating and cluttering of the market in competition with my own colleagues. So the present recording represents a more modest contribution; the five works on this single disc are particular favorites of mine – three of them recorded anew and two of them for the first time.

Malcolm Bilson