Brahms: Piano Sonata No 3 / Four Ballades

"…enjoyment of the disc came from Barenboim's richly imaginative, very personally committed response to the composer's overflowing romanticism. He leaves us in no doubt that every note sprang from an acutely susceptible heart… technical supremacy pales into insignificance alongside his musical insight, and nowhere more so than in the moonlit poetry of the Andante and the nostalgic Ruckblick, both exquisitely nuanced and shaded within an unbroken liquid flow. As for the finale, he finds unity in its diversity before a masterly revelation of Brahms's contrapuntal cunning in the triumphant home-coming." Gramophone Magazine

"… effortless technical command and excellent musical characterisation and insight … Most impressive, good value, too."
(Penguin Guide)