1. Alexei Lubimov Beethoven: Piano Sonatas, op. 109, 110, 111 (Zig Zag Territories) Lubimov plays three of the most profound sonatas ever written, on a piano made in Beethoven's time. His struggles with the old instrument enhance the deep humanity of the music.
2. Marc-André Hamelin Etudes (Hyperion) 2 Hamelin, a longtime Philly resident now in Boston, has been writing music for years, but this is the first album solely devoted to his work. It is not surprising, but it is fantastic; dense, lush, extraordinary textures, and played with his usual wizardry.
3. Inge Spinette/Jan Michiels La Valse a Mille Temps (Fuga Libera) This is a collection of mainly 19th-century four-hand piano waltzes, rendered with poetic expression on an exquisite French piano built in 1892. Contemporary composer Wolfgang Rihm stitches them together with new music.
4. Peter Orth/Jonathan Hays/Jeremy Gill Helian/Book of Hours (Albany) Local composer Jeremy Gill writes music that evokes the ancient power of the art, in the manner of his teacher, George Crumb, as in the piano work Book of Hours. He can also conjure the great German lieder tradition, as in Helian.
5. Leslie Howard Rachmaninoff Sonatas 1&2 (Melba) Absolutely magnificent playing by Howard, with his vivid performance of the early Piano Sonata No. 1 of Rachmaninoff, much less heard than the second, a real stand-out.
6. Sigiswald Kuijken/La Petite Bande Bach Brandenberg Concertos (Accent) You don't really know this ubiquitous music until you've heard it played by a period instrument group. La Petite Bande makes the music sound like baroque jazz on this re-release of a classic performance.
7. Heidi Louise Williams Drive American (Albany) An all-American program of solo piano music that is lots of fun, beginning with John Adams' manic American Berserk and ending with a trio of superb Etudes by William Bolcom. The stuff in between, by Tower, Crozier, Yi and Thomas, is good, too.
8. Tilson Thomas/San Francisco Symphony Orchestra Ives-Brant: A Concord Symphony (SFS Media) Henry Brant's orchestration of Charles Ives' mighty Concord Sonata, originally a solo piano work, was the culmination of a lifelong project.
9. Chris Brown/William Winant Iconicities (New World) Entrancing music for percussion and computer effects, exactingly performed by composer Chris Brown and percussionist William Winant. Think Steve Reich on Quaaludes.
10. Leon Kirchner Music for Orchestra (Albany) The late Leon Kirchner was an American master, and his tough but beautifully well-crafted orchestra music is a special treat. He is the soloist in his own Piano Concerto here, from a historic 1956 recording.
Our Top Albums of 2011 coverage continues next week when Shaun Brady rounds up the best jazz. After that, DJ Nights knight Gair "dev79" Marking will do the Top Dance/Electronic, and folk hero Mary Armstrong will take on the Top Roots. And our Top 21 Rock/Pop/Hip-Hop Albums issue drops Dec. 21. In the meantime, we'll be rattling off our favorite songs of the year on our A&E blog, Critical Mass.
