Sensibly avoiding the Schumann works that Angela Hewitt has already recorded for Hyperion, Driver has been drawn into the less frequently explored world of the Novelletten Op 23, and the Nachtstücke Op 23, both of them composed in the late 1830s. If rarer than the Davidbündlertänze, Kinderszenen or Humoreske, these are vintage Schumann, radiating as they do that typical mix of beguiling poetic inspiration, vital virtuosity and lyrical allure.

Driver's understanding of the Schumann language and pianistic texture is astute: taking the fifth and longest of the Novelletten as just one example, the underlying polonaise rhythms that define the music's principal sections have firm impetus, with the more inward episodes winsomely self-communing.

Moreoever, there is an unbroken thread of thought running through Driver's interpretation, with the fluxes of harmony and the nuances of dynamics artlessly etched in and a natural flow and impetus to the music from its very start to its hushed finish.

The poise, focus and imagination that Driver brings to the Novelletten are equally applied to the four Nachtstücke, the crepuscular atmosphere of the first one being set against the shifting lights and images of the other three.

This is playing of a most perceptive order.