Alexander Gadjiev, Purcell Room We’ve seen some blistering pianistic action in the Queen Elizabeth Hall over the past few weeks, but the place where lightning really struck was the humble little Pur...Read More
Paul Lewis, Royal Festival Hall, London The British pianist Paul Lewis doesn’t have a wide repertoire, but he focuses on his chosen composers with white-hot intensity. For a while this meant wall-to...Read More
Liza Ferschtman/Roman Rabinovich, Wigmore Hall, 30.12.17 Roman Rabinovich – credit Balazs Borocz When a work is described as ‘uncommonly difficult for all concerned’, as Gerald Larner...Read More
Yuja Wang, Royal Festival Hall The elfin Yuja Wang has now reached thirty, so must be judged by grown-up standards. A shame that she ducked out of the ‘Hammerklavier’ Sonata originally billed for ...Read More
Out, brief candle! As life nears its end, thoughts can acquire urgent clarity. This truth may not be particularly perceptible in literature, because novelists find endless ways of disguising it. But i...Read More
Should we know the story behind the creation of a piece of music, or should we let it speak for itself? The British cellist Steven Isserlis poses this question in the liner note to a CD he has just re...Read More