Word: adagio
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...complemented the brilliant music and Stepner's clear, light tone. At times, his tone seemed almost too thin, but his low notes were startlingly dark and rich. The cadenzas began tentatively, though they always progressed into intricate virtuosic passages rich with finely wrought ornamentations. The solo passage in the Adagio movement was especially memorable, as Stepner had a chance to showcase his sweet high register. How this piece fit exactly into the Valentine's Day theme was a bit unclear, though it was certainly a welcome addition to the program...
Also worthy of esteem was the Autumn Adagio Molto, with the rich initial phrasing of the baroque guitar played with bravura by Olav Chris Henriksen. With Gibbon's rhythmic, plucking continuo, the music lulled guests into imaginary dulcet slumber. During the Allegro, the orchestra, which had been struggling a bit at first with dynamics and synchronicity, finally gelled and the harpsichord rocked along, tying the ends together splendidly...
...fantasy on Frank Churchill's music for the 1937 Disney animated film. But lest one think that Wild is all flash and no substance, his recent recording of Beethoven's thorny "Hammerklavier" Sonata, on the Chesky label, is grandly conceived and brilliantly executed, from the soulful (and lengthy) Adagio to the triumphant final Fugue, a supreme test of both fingers and musical intelligence. Wild's reputation may rest on his pyrotechnics, but his musical sensitivity is growing even richer with...
...Sonata's Adagio brought a completely introspective tone to the performance. Levinson's lines seemed to come from a different world as they mingled with Buswell's wide vibrato. The music couldn't help but acquire a very private quality, hardly the kind that reaches out to an audience; the listeners could not readily participate in the experience, except by observing. Many became restless during and especially after the movement, but Buswell quieted them with a nod to Levinson, whose crashing entrance gave an almost attacca start to the last movement...
...Sonata's Adagio espressivo certainly captured a more intimate feeling, but the playing was emotionally unremarkable. The high point of the Beethoven came in the Scherzo. where Buswell's devil-may-care boldness struck a wonderful contrast to Levinson's filigreed lines. Here, the interplay of the instruments finally reached the same heights it had achieved in the Bartok...