Marius Dawn
Pianist
June 2016

In his recent book, Alfred Brendel says that he becomes physically ill listening to Scarlatti performed on a piano. I presume Brendel prefers his Scarlatti on a harpsichord—but why? In the hands of sensitive pianists (Vladimir Horowitz springs to mind), Scarlatti on the piano can easily outshine the limitations of the harpsichord. Angela Hewitt, a pianist through and through, enjoys the many layers of piano colours that she can use to paint these short sonatas. Using her preferred Fazioli, Hewitt has a way with the minor key sonatas that shows off her delicate touch and sound to the full, with generally well-judged tempos too. Thankfully, Hewitt plays using all the possibilities of a modern piano, not limiting herself to the mono sound of a harpsichord. This is a release all Hewitt fans will welcome and is a good introduction to choose few who have not yet discovered this versatile pianist.