The playing…perfectly captures the essence of each piece and links them together…Add in the generous playing time, superlative sound, and a Steinway D that speaks with unforced clarity.

It should be said right away that Albert Tiu is a wonderful pianist…Tiu’s seamless blending of the familiar and the obscure is highly compelling. But more than anything else, I will return to this CD for the mesmerizing piano playing.

The four Berio pieces, Erdenklavier, Luftklavier, Wasserklavier and Feuerklavier form the spine of the recital, performed with high intellect and superb technique. It would be difficult for Tiu to be first choice throughout: Hamelin trumps him in the Godowsky, for example. But what really grips is the juxtaposition of the familiar (Debussy Préludes) with lesser-known offerings (Griffes’ The Night Winds, charmingly Impressionistic, or Ibert’s Le vent dans les ruines). For Fire, the surprise is Brassin’s wonderful transcription of Wagner’s ‘Feuerzauber’.

Tiu’s imaginative and deeply perceptive programme [is] delivered with profound understanding and great musical sensitivity.