What a joy it is for this retired piano teacher to hear the clarity and proportion Jonathan Biss achieves in his first three albums of Beethoven's 32 Piano Sonatas. Biss has immersed himself in studying Beethoven's time, place, scores and personality. With this forethought, he goes for the long melodic lines, the well-balanced harmonies and the driving rhythms that Beethoven employs to express an amazing emotional range: sinister threats, good humor, despair, ardor, joy and serenity (to name just a few). His allegros declare the plot; his adagios dig deep; his prestos scale the heights. I have played several of the sonatas myself and listened to recordings by Schnabel and other artists for over 50 years, but Biss's performances are the truest and most stirring I have heard. In his skilled hands, Beethoven's music touches me deeply and gives me hope. Thank you, Jonathan Biss, for making the world a better place. I look forward to future releases.