Anyone who regards Charles-Valentin Alkan as a pathetic joke--reputedly killed when his book case fell on him--should listen to Marc-André Hamelin's recording of Symphony for Solo Piano and think again. Scholarly, obsessed with his Jewish scriptures, and so reclusive that he would disappear from view for years at a time, Alkan was also a virtuoso pianist in the Lisztean mould. Liszt himself thought highly of him, which makes interesting sense of the fact that some of the pieces on this disc seem to adumbrate Liszt's own works. Others are clearly influenced by Chopin, whom Alkan inordinately admired. Schumann, on the other hand, was contemptuous of the Souvenirs which close this collection, and one can easily see why: the first is lachrymose mood-music, the second ("Le vent") a rather obvious nature-picture depending on chromatic runs, while the third cries out for Schumann's fancy to set it free. But the Symphony itself is noble, and the religious works that follow are imbued with palpable exaltation: Alkan translated the Bible, then destroyed his translation, but remained convinced that the whole book should be set to music. Hamelin's virtuosity is at its peak throughout. --Michael Church