LDV91

20 FAURÉ | 13 BARCAROLLES ∙ BALLADE OP.19 In the end, what made you want to revisit these Barcarolles, which have been so important in your career? Your recording was an unexpected success that helped not only to gain you a reputation as a faurean, but also to launch you on the international scene. It’s a strange story: I was in the car, I turned the radio on, and suddenly I heard Barcarolle no.1. And there I was, commenting on the interpretation without mincing my words. My wife heard me say: ‘But how can he do that? That’s one way of looking at it, but it’s not the right interpretation at all. And those tempo changes . . . On the other hand, that bit is not badly done’ – and so forth. After a few minutes, the announcer named the pianist. It was me . . . I was so dismayed, I knew immediately that I had to do something about it. It became an irrepressible urge. But what was it that really bothered you in that first version? The fluctuations of the central section, which didn’t fit in with the opening. And also the inflections, the notes played with the hands out of sync. I found the whole thing really wasn’t up to standard, especially as I had played that First Barcarolle a lot over the years, so it had matured in me.