You can have too much of a good thing sometimes. Brahms’s two sets of Liebeslieder waltzes (love song waltzes) and his Op 39 waltzes were designed for domestic consumption, to be played and sung by talented families around the pianoforte… but not all in one evening. To hear all 49 in one go is a dizzying experience, a triple-time trauma. However, when taken in small doses it’s possible to really enjoy their melodic inventiveness, particularly when the playing is this good. Husband and wife Ivo Varbanov and Fiammetta Tarli bring sparkle and swing to this repertoire on this, the first outing on their new label.
