Haydn has the well-earned reputation as "father" of not only the symphony, but of the string quartet, too. Though not the originator of either genre, he was principally responsible for the norms of what the genres were during the classical era. His prodigious and prolific output in these areas sometimes overshadows his achievements in others. A case in point is his piano sonata output, far more extensive and far less known than either Mozart's or Beethoven's. Though some are well-known, especially some of the later ones, there are some real gems and delights throughout the output. Things get complicated further, however, by dubious or doubtful authenticity in some cases; this month's CCM, the piano sonata #10 (listed in Hoboken as #1) is an example.

I was unfamiliar with Rudolf Buchbinder's playing until I heard this recording, and I bought it tentatively; "complete" collections almost always are hazardous endeavors, and the larger the "complete" collection is, the worse the recordings tend to be. So far, I am pleasantly surprised. He is a straight-forward, no-nonsense player, but shows some hints of real imagination (in the best sense) on some of these performances.