Audiophile1,
FWIW, I JUST recieved my copy of the Kissin Impromptus 4 this AM, my earlier comments were about his recording on Volume 1 at Carnegie hall which did not include it.
For performance comparisons, for Jax's purposes, I did a down and dirty listen to it as well as the Hewlett and Nakamatsu versions which I had previously commented on to Jax2 in my original post, and which I selected because of my view of the 'dreamy nature' of their performances of Impromptus 4.
The tone, or contrasts in tone, in Hewletts and Nakamatsu's was softer, less sharply delineated, if you will. The tempo about the same. Some will love Kissin's version I think, especially if you like a more masculine style (and I do with a lot of Chopin, especially his sonatas). And that is how I heard the Kissin recording. But that was just once, Ill be listening to it again and I'll keep an open mind. I love alternatives in everything.
BTW the acoustic and recording techniques are totally different from my other Kissin/Carnegie Hall recordings I mentioned to Jax2. I think this last recording (made in 2007) is more balanced over the entire spectrum and if you like Kissin's Chopin there is no reason not to have this CD nor any of his others for that matter if you are not too anal about audio.
BTW, you make take solice in the fact that my piano experience is as limited as my computer keyboard skills. Slow, hunt and peck, with lots of errors. But, as I love a good read, I love the music from a solo piano. A prime interest for me.