Tchaikovsky Ballet Suites for Piano Duo CD review – sparkle and style

Two take three… the Kodama sisters play music from Nutcracker, Sleeping Beauty and Swan Lake.

The Japanese sisters Mari and Momo Kodama grew up hearing The Nutcracker. That deep familiarity gives their performance of the suite here, transcribed for two pianos by Arensky (1861-1906), particular sparkle and style. The Sugar Plum Fairy sounds as delicate on piano as for the celesta or the original orchestration, and the delicious Pas de deux loses nothing in translation. Rachmaninov’s version of Sleeping Beauty, made when he was still in his teens at Tchaikovsky’s request, sounds slightly smudgy in comparison, in need of more edge. The short suite from Swan Lake (arr. Langer) works well, as does Debussy’s for the same ballet – fascinatingly, still retaining Debussy’s distinctive voice. An enjoyable way to encounter these scores.