Franz Schubert (1797-1828) composed both sets of Impromptus in 1827 during the last year of his rather short life. It seems the first set was assigned the title of "Impromptus" not by himself, but by his publisher, most likely due to their quicksilver shifts in mood and mode, from bright to dark and back, or from major to minor and back, and certainly not because they were quickly improvised as the name impromptu suggests. They are highly detailed and fully structured works in the traditional sense, so much so that the four pieces from the Op. 142 set, when combined and played in sequence, seem to form a complete Sonata. They are not barnstorming, groundbreaking, technically challenging or in any way push-the-envelope works, like late Beethoven, Liszt or Chopin, since Schubert himself was not a pianist endowed with technical prowess (apparently is one and only, first and final public recital took place in March of 1828), but they certainly confirm that he was a composer capable of deeply emotive expression and highly lyrical melodic invention.

Over the years I've heard many recordings and interpretations of these seminal piano works, by many of the best musicians this world has to offer, and some from the old-school of piano performance, like Brendel for example, do stand out. But most of the more recent attempts approach these from a dry, technical and lifeless perspective bereft of any spiritual understanding. I've even heard one of the greats (who shall remain nameless) play the descending runs of the Op. 90 No. 4 so fast as to sound ludicrous.

Turkish-German pianist Kemal Cem Yilmaz instinctively throws into relief the vocal nature of these piano pieces (after all, Schubert was first and foremost a composer of lieder) and like a singer, knows when and where to slow down and breathe. Here and there, during the more passionate passages, you can even hear him hum along, à la Glenn Gould, when emotion takes over. But don't worry, it's so faint that at first I thought I was hearing things. He clearly "gets" the aforementioned shifts in mood and mode, and responds accordingly with warmth, tenderness or passion. And even though these are not technically challenging pieces, there are still quite a few passages that require clear and articulate phrasing, as well as proper dynamic balance between the left and right hand, all things that Kemal Cem Yilmaz does with natural ease. You most likely already have one or more recordings of the Schubert Impromptus in your music collection but should seriously consider this one as an alternative. And if not, don't hesitate.

In conclusion, we all know how many talented musicians or people with high degrees of education fail to make it and end up being taxi drivers. It turns out it's the other way around for Kemal Cem Yilmaz. He worked twelve years of his life as a taxi driver in Hannover, in order to support his musical studies and freelance recitals. This seems to be only his sophomore recording, the first being a release, on the same label, of Bach's Goldberg Variations. Let's hope there are many more.