Martha Argerich's involvement with chamber music has dominated the later part of her career, so it's easy to think of her name with the words "and friends" tacked on, and to visualize the large and diverse retinue of famous musicians who have recorded with her. This triple-disc box set from EMI Classics presents live recordings from the 2010 Progetto
Martha Argerich in Lugano, several of them collaborations with
Argerich, notably in works by
Robert Schumann,
Franz Liszt, and
Béla Bartók, as well as a performance of
Frédéric Chopin's Piano Concerto No. 1 in E minor, where she is the featured soloist with the
Orchestra della Svizzera Italiana. Fans of
Argerich, for whom money is no object, may buy this set on the strength of these four recordings, overlooking the eight other performances that do not include her. But other listeners may balk, feeling that the packaging is misleading and the program is lopsided, offering much less of
Argerich than the title and cover photo suggest. In any event, these performances are a mixed lot in a program that includes loud, bravura playing and quieter pieces and subtler reflections, and from a roster of some of the leading musicians regularly performing in Europe. Violinist
Renaud Capuçon and cellist
Gautier Capuçon are perhaps the best known, and each performs with
Argerich in pieces by
Schumann. Celebrated pianist
Stephen Kovacevich also joins
Argerich in the
Bartók Sonata for two pianos and percussion, so this certainly is noteworthy for the match-up. But the rest of the set should be sampled before purchase, because name recognition is not enough to guarantee satisfaction. EMI's sound quality is good, considering the concert venue.