Harsh piano recording of Clair de Lune

[TonyJZX]

none of those youtube ones have the sparkle... they just sound dull

here's two that are 'better' to me

 

[holdingpants01]

to me it's a rather honky sounding recording, no wonder it could be unpleasant to listen. Most of the energy is focused around the 500-1000Hz, with recessed low end and high end

 

[JIW]

The fuzzy sound is likely the piano's dampers exaggerated by close miking.

That could well be since on some of the louder parts it is lacking.

 

[RDoc]

The first one triggers my tinnitus…not sure why, the high notes almost sound discordant.
I can tolerate this version much better than either of those:

I find the same. It's much more pleasant for me than the Thibaudet.

Overall, I'm still with the tinnitus explanation, although what exactly is triggering it based on different recordings isn't at all clear to me. Loudness clearly is a big issue. If I turn down the volume a bit, it makes a big difference, particularly on the alternative recordings people have suggested. For some reason though, at the same apparent loudness, the Thibaudet recording is a problem for me. When I'm alone listening to classical music, I do prefer it pretty loud though.

Hearing is weird it seems.