Claude Debussy: Early and late piano pieces – Steven Osborne

A programme which bridges Debussy’s first work for piano (the Danse bohémienne, from 1880) and his last (Les soirs illuminés par l’ardeur du charbon, from 1917). Steven Osborne is equally responsive to the very different musical moods of both.

Not only are there plenty of lively dances on here to counter the cliché of the ‘wispy’ Debussy, but the contrasts between tracks and the clarity at any dynamic level – and of course Osborne can play with magical refinement – are wondrous…Total delight, whether you listen to it in one or more sittings. — BBC Music Magazine, November 2022, 5 out of 5 stars