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Mozart: Complete Piano Sonatas. Orli Shaham, piano. Canary Classics. $49.98 (6 CDs).

     Orli Shaham’s delight in Mozart is everywhere apparent in her Canary Classics cycle of the composer’s 18 piano sonatas, recorded in 2019 and 2020, released individually as two single CDs and two two-CD sets, and now packaged as a complete sequence. A pianist of sensitivity and close engagement with the music, Shaham allows the sonatas their full scope by taking all repeats and reproduces some of Mozart’s intent by creating decorations and embellishments for the music almost throughout – although these are certainly not historically informed performances and are given on a modern Steinway, whose full resources Shaham does not hesitate to employ from time to time (albeit sparingly – thankfully).

     The singing quality of Mozart’s piano writing, to which other performers have also paid attention, is prominent in Shaham’s readings, and her sense of vocal lines stands these recordings in good stead and frequently brings out a level of flow and simple (but not always simple) beauty that borders on the enchanting. For example, in Sonata No. 13, K. 333, operatic elements are prominent in the opening movement, which glides along like a sweet little cabaletta until Mozart makes it something more pianistic. The second movement also has a singing quality – indeed, it is marked Andante cantabile – and Shaham makes the most of this element, just as she pays close attention to the gracefulness of a finale marked Allegretto grazioso.

     Shaham plays both the larger, more-complex sonatas and the smaller ones with the same attentiveness and an enjoyment that is almost palpable. No. 18, K. 576, is filled with technical difficulty that gives Shaham no pause whatsoever, but it is interesting that she seems especially to enjoy the playful aspects of the work’s finale. On the other hand, No. 16, K. 545, which was designated by the composer as “for beginners,” works best when taken seriously by advanced players – and Shaham plays (and decorates) it as if she enjoys it, which is a fine and appropriate approach.

     There is a great deal to enjoy throughout the six-and-a-half hours of music here. These are knowing and carefully considered interpretations that tend, at least from time to time, to lean a bit more into the Romantic era than the music readily supports – but that are heartfelt and sincerely communicative throughout. Certainly it is possible to nitpick if one is so inclined. For instance, in No. 1, K. 279, Shaham tends to overuse the pedal a bit too often in chordal material – but her handling of the twinkling finale is thoroughly engaging. On the other hand, No. 15, K. 533/494 – a sonata that is more pretty than profound, being very well-made but a trifle on the cool side – lacks the small Romantic touches that Shaham employs elsewhere, resulting in a performance that is stately and elegant without being particularly moving.

     The cycle as a whole has warmth and expressiveness communicated more by Shaham herself than by over-reliance on a modern piano and the occasional inappropriate post-Mozartean touches that it invites. This is a pianist whose love of the music and close personal relationship with it clearly inform her interpretations: there is an intimacy to these readings that makes it feel as if she is sharing something of importance and enjoyment with close friends rather than producing an expansive sound for a large audience. It is the intimacy of the performances rather than any particular interpretative insight they contain that makes Shaham’s cycle so appealing.

     Unfortunately, there are capricious and sometimes outright sloppy presentation elements associated with this cycle – not in the music but in the recording and packaging – that detract from its appeal. Most notably, there is no discernible reason for the sonatas being presented as they are: Nos. 3, 13 and 17 in Volume 1; Nos. 9, 12, 18, 16, 4, 5 and 11, in that order, in the two-CD package called Volumes 2/3; Nos. 2, 1 and 6, in that order, in Volume 4; and Nos. 7, 8, 10, 14 and 15 in the two-CD package called Volumes 5/6. Total lengths of the sonatas are provided only for Volumes 1-4, not in the final two-CD set. There is no explanation for the names of sonatas Nos. 6 (Dürnitz) or 16 (für Anfänger). Nor is there an explanation of the chosen numbering system that designates K. 310 as No. 9 and K. 311 as No. 8 rather than the other way around (there is good reason for this, but why not explain?).

     There is surely some solid thinking behind the sequencing. In fact, Volume 1 includes the three sonatas in B-flat, and that is both logical and intriguing. But if there is similar thoughtfulness behind the remainder of the ordering, it is unclear and unexplained. That means the most likely reason for this order of presentation is simply that Shaham wants to present the sonatas this way – which is perfectly fine, but it would be nice to know why; and such a highly personal decision, by its very nature, somewhat limits the appeal of the cycle to listeners whose individual feelings about the music match or at least parallel Shaham’s.

     The booklet enclosures with the packages would seem the logical place to discuss matters like these, but these are woefully inadequate. The booklet with Volumes 5/6 comes closest to giving some background on Shaham herself, her history with Mozart, and her thinking about the sonatas. The booklet with Volumes 2/3 is the longest and the most personal – Shaham discusses her feelings about Mozart at some length and talks about various specific sonatas that, however, are not included in that volume, which was originally released (like all the volumes here) as a standalone product. The booklet with Volume 1 relates most directly to the music on the CD and is the only enclosure of real value for listeners not already well-acquainted with the music. The booklet for Volume 4 is a very brief throwaway. Considering the care and consistency with which Shaham performs these sonatas – whatever their order – the ancillary material could be and should have been substantially better.

     To some extent, these are niggling negatives; and to some extent, Canary Classics – which was founded in 2003 by Shaham’s brother, violinist Gil Shaham, and is owned by him – can do whatever it pleases and can afford to thumb its nose at any criticism of its decision-making. But Orli Shaham deserves better, strictly from the viewpoint of the presentation and packaging quality of this cycle, than she receives here. She has lived with Mozart’s sonatas for decades and has obviously thought about them with a level of deep involvement that appears again and again in her interpretations. She regales listeners with performances that were done under very difficult circumstances (because of the COVID-19 pandemic, during which many were recorded) but that never show the extent of external strain as the music unfolds in an unerring flow of beauty. Indeed, Mozart himself lived through periods of enormous personal difficulty in the years in which he produced these sonatas, but transcended his troubles to produce music that, if not entirely problem-free, possesses a foundational form of uplift and positivity that continues to communicate effectively more than 230 years after the composer’s death. Shaham connects with this music viscerally as well as thoughtfully, and it is through that connection that she forges a bond that bridges the centuries and shows the extent to which Mozart can continue to move, delight and inspire performers and listeners alike.