Every piece in Rana's tapestry is vividly characterised, and none are overblown, didactic or taken at an extreme tempo. The alternating comedy, grandeur, and exultant cleverness of the up-beat variations surges boldly out, while the seemingly endless melody of Variation 13 feels at moments suspended in mid-flight, the lamentation of Variation 15 cries to the heavens, and the tragedy of the 'Black Pearl' becomes heart stoppingly profound. For this CD, five stars are not enough.

Her detailing is one of the aspects that makes this performance so compelling, be it the bringing out of a new line in the repeat, subtle changes in phrasing, a touch of pedal – examples are to be found in every single variation...the return of the Aria is as emotionally multifaceted as you would expect – mysterious, quizzical, noble, resigned, hopeful – setting the seal on a life-affirming disc.

Beware! I put on this disc and found myself barely able to move for the 78 minutes of Bach’s masterpiece, so familiar yet suddenly so new. Rana’s playing has a kind of Orphic seductiveness, a transcendent lightness of touch...A supremely intelligent reading.

this recording creates a wholly individual, inward mood. She cultivates an extremely wide range of sound, in some variations as hard-hitting as Glenn Gould, at others dreamy and serene...she galvanises the final variations into an exuberant, moving sequence before returning to the peace of the aria with utter calm.

In the United States, at least, Ms. Rana has not yet acquired the reputation of some other young pianists. She should, and she will, for what she displays here is playing of preternatural sensitivity, sophistication and control, along with a touch of magic, as Bach’s theme returns at the end.