Marc-Andre Hamelin's first set of Haydn piano sonatas was Hyperion's best-selling release of 2007. It had the critics jostling to acclaim his performances in the highest terms, in particular his expression of the 'physical exhilaration of Haydn's playful inspiration in a way unmatched by any pianist past or present' (International Piano Magazine). His second volume, released in a year where new Haydn recordings are prominent, should surely match the critical and commercial success of the first. Some of Haydn's most alluring and appealing keyboard works are recorded here. The surprising (to some) emotional range of the composer is fully evident in the extraordinarily sensitive and intimate Sonata No. 49 in E flat major written for Maria Ann von Genzinger and the profoundly felt Andante con variazioni in F minor, the composition of which coincided with her death.