Hi-Res Downloads

192kHz/24-bit ALAC/FLAC, Linn Records CKD475 (supplied by www.linnrecords.com)

Chopin collectors will (should) have the Preludes with Friedrich Gulda [Audite/DG, 1950s] or his one-time pupil Martha Argerich [DG, 1975]. Add fellow-Argentinian Ingrid Fliter to the list! Unsurprisingly, her Chopin readings have become more interesting since her 2008/09 EMI debut CDs with the Waltzes, etc. Boldly individual she’s particularly thoughtful in the quiet tracks, while in, say, the thunderous F-minor (No.18) you never feel that her powerful sound will run out of reserves. The pacing of No 2 might put you in mind of Mussorgsky’s ‘Polish oxcart’ from Pictures At An Exhibition while the evergreen ‘Raindrop’ (No 15) makes me long to hear Ingrid Flier in Ravel’s Gaspard de la Nuit. Linn’s sound is truly realistic (Potton Hall), close and rock-solid. This release also has five Mazurkas and two popular Nocturnes to make up a 76m programme. CB

Sound Quality: 90%

Hi-Fi News Lab Report

Sampling at 192kHz may seem excessive to record a piano with a harmonic bandwidth that rarely exceeds 20kHz, but the noise floor is exceptionally clean and the ‘window’ so wide it captures every ambient nuance. PM