Andras Schiff, a lifelong advocate of Schumann, has returned to manuscript sources for this recital, which begins early with Papillons, Op 11 and spans the composer's career through to Geistervariationen ("Ghost Variations"), in the middle of writing which Schumann attempted suicide. It was his last completed piano work, and is as shadowy and mysterious as the title suggests. Schiff plays the hushed opening theme as if holding his breath. In addition to the published version of the Fantasy in C, Schiff offers the unexpected, alternative ending, long hidden in a library in Budapest. So there is much to explore here, as well as Schiff's formidably incisive, subtle and persuasive pianism to relish.
