Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

“A talent destined for greatness, Lise de la Salle has the Midas touch. The most complete, thought-provoking young artist to come my way since the days of Pollini, Argerich and Lupu” International Record Review

“…Lise de la Salle's… vividly recorded programme is cleverly chosen so as to present the broadest possible representation of each composer's style. Although there are some exceptionally fine recordings of the Mozart pieces on the market… de la Salle delivers committed performances that take full account of the stylistic conventions of the period but never shirk from presenting an individual view of the music... De la Salle's Prokofiev is even more convincing. She builds up a formidable head of steam in the Toccata... and the contrasting sections of the Third Sonata are just as imaginatively characterised.” BBC Music Magazine, Proms 2007 *****

“Young talent does not come more brilliantly or ardently alive than this. De la Salle is tremulously expressive in Mozart's A minor Rondo, making every bar pulse and breathe with a special life and prophecy of romantic things to come. But then she is no less successful in Prokofiev's diablerie, finding time, despite her headlong tempo, for piquant asides in the Toccata, for a loving romantic dalliance in parts of the Third Sonata and for a reminder in her selection from Romeo and Juliet of delicacy and affection beneath Prokofiev's outwardly prickly and intractable nature.” Gramophone Magazine, August 2007

“Young talent does not come more brilliantly or ardently alive than this. Clearly designed to demonstrate this 19-year-old pianist's versatility, Naïve's album showcases her in radically different composers and finds her equally persuasive in both. De la Salle is tremulously expressive in Mozart's A minor Rondo, making every bar pulse and breathe with a special life and prophecy of romantic things to come. She revels in the bustle and ceremony of the D major Sonata, K284. Hear her enviable perle in the last-movement Vars 1 and 3, her change to minor-key contemplation in Var 7, in the florid musings of Var 11 – and in her pinpoint definition and character in the K265 Variations – and here you surely have a young pianist born for Mozart.
But then she is no less successful in Prokofiev's diablerie, finding time, despite her headlong tempo, for piquant asides in the Toccata, for a loving romantic dalliance in parts of the Third Sonata and for a reminder in her selection from Romeo and Juliet of delicacy and affection beneath Prokofiev's outwardly prickly and intractable nature. This superb album concludes with a short DVD showing De la Salle exclaiming over what she clearly sees as her enchanted life (while acknowledging the hard work involved). All things being equal, she is clearly on the threshold of a major career. Her freshness and vitality are already something very special.” Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010

“Gil and Orli Shaham give warm and ardent performances of these pieces, bringing the music vividly to life.” BBC Music Magazine, August 2007 ****

“With this delectably performed and well engineered recording he (Bebbington) is well set to enter the mainstream CD market.” Birmingham Post, May 2007

“…perfect repertoire with which to remember the polished technical command and (what New Grove terms) "patrician elegance" of Henryk Szeryng. Common to all… the silver thread of Szeryng's unfailingly sweet tone and faultless intonation, qualities which, needless to say, bring special beauty and richness to the Mozart G major Concerto; indeed, its slow movement is presented with the most gloriously smooth and intense of long lines...” Gramophone Magazine, October 2007

“…Gilels teams up with fellow Neuhaus pupil Yakov Zak to provide a dazzling display of ensemble work.” BBC Music Magazine, July 2007 *****

“…an account of Tchaikovsky's Sixth Symphony (Pathétique) which is so frenetic, and with so many drastic changes of tempo, that it sounds like a great old-style podium maestro at work. It's amazing, devastating.” BBC Music Magazine, July 2007 *****

“Those desiring period Mozart will find much to enjoy in this release … Adam Fischer cultivates crystalline ensemble timbres from the Danish Radio Sinfonietta … It's Fischer's light-hearted phrasing that makes his Mozart sound distinctive.” Classics Today