Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 12 in A flat major, Op. 26 'March Funebre'

“Perianes' technique is quietly impressive … he uses it to serve the music. This is very appealing. Harmonia Mundi’s recorded sound in the present release is well suited to Periane’s attractive pianistic touch and tone.” International Record Review, October 2012

“Perianes approaches Beethoven with a freshness and individuality that is immediately engaging. The opening movement of Sonata No. 12, Op. 26 demonstrates some exceptional qualities, most obviously his ability to maximise contrast and characterisation between the different variations; he produces a beautifully veiled tone for those passages of a more reflective nature.” BBC Music Magazine, December 2012 ***

“Perianes sets an appropriately veiled mood in the Tempest Sonata's first-movement introduction and throughout the Adagio but elsewhere rounds out the music's angular edges and dramatic surges.” Gramophone Magazine, November 2012

“Biss's linear contouring and razor-sharp touch in the Scherzo leave [Paul] Lewis's dainty deliberation at the starting-gate...Audiences seem to inspire more dangerous and no less technically assured Beethoven-playing from Biss; perhaps a live concert would be a better context for Onyx to continue cultivating their Biss/Beethoven merger.” Gramophone Magazine, January 2012

“There's a wonderfully unforced quality to Biss's playing that's as effective in Beethoven as it was in the outstanding Schumann disc with which he really made his name four years ago. The way in which he eases into the opening movement of the A flat Funeral March Sonata Op 26, or perfectly weights the climaxes in Op 81a, Les Adieux, are marks of an outstanding pianist; for those who stay the course, this could be a Beethoven cycle to treasure.” The Guardian, 22nd December 2011 *****

“Biss takes a middle-of-the-road view – no overly prim classicism, no romantic waywardness. He handles the slow music of Sonatas 5 and 26 thoughtfully, and the latter’s lively finale is suitably inspiring.” Financial Times, 7th January 2012 ***

“Biss turned 30 two years ago, and he’s anything but youthfully rash in his approach. His concern is with the range and sheer fecundity of Beethoven’s invention...Tonally, the playing is finely controlled, with a balance that’s rich in the bass and smooth in the treble, and the recording is well-focused, without clouding effects from any overhang of reverberation. What’s not to like?” Irish Times, 20th January 2012

“[Biss] has all the ingredients he needs to become one of today's great Beethovenians. This disc proves he's well on the way. He teases out the brilliant and quirky heart of the sonatas; he is affectionate in the reflective slow movements, and witty and light-fingered in the virtuoso sky-rockets. He takes nothing for granted: in his hands Beethoven is no pompous grand master but an energetic radical, bursting at the seams with fresh ideas.”” Classic FM Magazine, February 2012 ****

“The performances — brilliant, precisely thought, yet spontaneous-sounding — are a joy. I also like the way Biss has chosen to begin with four of the least often heard sonatas, then shows how wrong we are not to celebrate them, for in his hands they are a continual surprise and delight.” Sunday Times, 29th January 2012

“this is a marvellously promising beginning by one of the most thoughtful and technically accomplished pianists of the younger generation...his playing is by no means didactic: it is forceful, fierce but not exaggerated, and sometimes scintillating...I look forward to the next instalment” BBC Music Magazine, March 2012 *****

“...the spotlight is on the Moonlight, and Hewitt's performance is totally riveting. Adopting a flowing yet sustained tempo for the opening movement, she creates a beautifully veiled and hypnotic sound...whilst the Presto agitato balances tremendous finger dexterity with passion and urgency.” BBC Music Magazine, August 2010 *****

“Almost violent dynamic contrasts are frequent, but Ohlsson takes them as far as is idiomatic but no further. Even more important, there are no 'bridge passages' in these performances, everything is melodic or dramatic.” BBC Music Magazine, August 2008 *****

“exquisite playing wedded to a deep understanding of this music. Ohlsson's concentration and dynamic control are mesmerizing...and it is beautifully recorded.” Fanfare