Encores

On Encores, Daniel Barenboim selects some of his favourite encores from his dazzling career—which began in 1950, when the pianist was a child prodigy—to mark his 80th-birthday year. Recorded beautifully in Berlin’s Pierre Boulez Saal, the album showcases Barenboim’s characteristic range of colour. The third of Schubert’s 4 Impromptus has real poetry, and Barenboim knows that less is more in Schumann’s “Träumerei” and Debussy’s “Clair de lune.” The Schumann Fantasiestücke are beautifully judged, while the Chopin études show off Barenboim’s still-sparkling technique. Albéniz’s “Tango” is a delicious final note in this charming birthday celebration.