CD: Brahms, Schumann, Argerich/ Kremer/ Bashmet/ Maisky

It is now more than 20 years since Martha Argerich made a studio disc of solo piano repertoire; almost all her recordings since then have been of chamber music, usually taken live from recitals.

This account of Brahms's G minor Piano Quartet is a studio recording from 2002, and the results are every bit as incandescent as you would expect with Argerich partnering such a stellar trio of string players (Gidon Kremer, Yuri Bashmet and Mischa Maisky).

It sounds like a concert performance; there is a perfectly focused energy and sense of daring about every phrase. The sense of expressive give-and-take within the quartet seems almost subliminal.

Unfortunately, the account of the piano-trio Fantasiestücke isn't on the same level: it is by turns directionless and over-emphatic. As ever, though, Argerich's playing is crammed with vivid invention.