Lucas Debargue

Young French pianist Lucas Debargue came fourth in the 2015 Tchaikovsky Piano Competition and this is his third solo album. Some critics suggest his backstory contributed to his success: he was originally self-taught and uses a quirky fingering for scales, using only thumb and index finger.

Debargue’s first album included his competition repertoire (Ravel and Scarlatti). Here he turns to uncommon fare: two middle-period Schubert Sonatas and Szymanowski’s Second Sonata. He spins a nice line in Schubertian cantabile in the tender Andante of the Sonata in A Minor, and shows an innate understanding of the contrast between playfulness and drama in the finale. In both sonatas he proves a reliable guide: a more volatile Schubertian than Brendel...