...The unbelievable brio created by the Austrian pianist astonished the public. The certainty of these sudden intervals, the equal sound of these most complex chords, the flawless touch of all these staggering scales, the stunning variety of his touch - a clear left hand far beyond the usual.
... But when this virtuosity - which is amazing even in our times, the mastery of the instrument is being accompanied by a musical intelligence beyond all standards, that is shown by the choice of phrasing and nuances, by carving out the big melody lines and all harmonical subtleties, then one has to acknowledge to be in presence of an artistic phenomenon that discourages all peckish commentators.
It was a great Prokofiev, sometimes dazzling, always completely rounded despite thrilling musical breaches, that are typical in work of the great Russian musician. We don't recall to have ever heard an interpreter, who mastered the transition between this lyrical outpour of the main theme and this insane coda in such a brilliant way.
It really was one of these moments in which nothing disturbed. Why shouldn't one also mention the joy, that the instrumentalists humble attitude evoked, his rejection of any smug affection? An interpreter that wasn't frightened to play three encores for an enraptured audience, encores that enabled him to show a much wider range of his talent, from the highest risk in Liszt's Hungarian Rhapsody No. 6 followed by a melancholic enchantment of the third Consolation to the Etude Op. 8/12 by Scriabine. What musical generosity for our great pleasure.
... But when this virtuosity - which is amazing even in our times, the mastery of the instrument is being accompanied by a musical intelligence beyond all standards, that is shown by the choice of phrasing and nuances, by carving out the big melody lines and all harmonical subtleties, then one has to acknowledge to be in presence of an artistic phenomenon that discourages all peckish commentators.
It was a great Prokofiev, sometimes dazzling, always completely rounded despite thrilling musical breaches, that are typical in work of the great Russian musician. We don't recall to have ever heard an interpreter, who mastered the transition between this lyrical outpour of the main theme and this insane coda in such a brilliant way.
It really was one of these moments in which nothing disturbed. Why shouldn't one also mention the joy, that the instrumentalists humble attitude evoked, his rejection of any smug affection? An interpreter that wasn't frightened to play three encores for an enraptured audience, encores that enabled him to show a much wider range of his talent, from the highest risk in Liszt's Hungarian Rhapsody No. 6 followed by a melancholic enchantment of the third Consolation to the Etude Op. 8/12 by Scriabine. What musical generosity for our great pleasure.