Víkingur Ólafsson plays Glass in Berlin

By Sam Johnstone, 23 February 2017

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“a canvas on which Ólafsson painted a nuanced sound picture”

Reviewed at Konzerthaus: Werner-Otto Saal, Berlin on 21 February 2017

Glass, Opening

Glass, Étude no. 9

Glass, Étude no. 5

Glass, Étude no. 6

Glass, Étude no. 18

Glass, Étude no. 15

Glass, Opening (arr. String Quartet C. Badzura)

Glass, Étude no. 2

Glass, Étude no. 13

Glass, Étude no. 14

Glass, Étude no. 5 (arr. String Quartet C. Badzura)

Glass, Étude no. 20

Glass, Étude no. 2 (arr. String Quartet C. Badzura)

Rameau, Pièces de clavecin: Le Rappel des oiseaux

Liszt, Isolde's Liebestod from Wagner's Tristan und Isolde, transc. for piano, S 447

Víkingur Ólafsson, Piano

Members of the Konzerthaus Orchestra

All about mi : Víkingur Ólafsson conquers Paris

David Karlin, 15th March

In Bach, Beethoven and Schubert, the Icelandic pianist demonstrates how perfect technique and total control can lead to expressivity.

*****

A brilliant UK premiere of John Adams’ After the Fall

David Karlin, 25th February

The Icelandic pianist and Finnish conductor make a superb case for John Adams' latest concerto; the Philharmonia play Ravel's Daphnis et Chloé strongly but don't convince completely.

****1

John Adams leads Americana, past and present, with LA Phil

Néstor Castiglione, 23rd January

Compelling as a composer and conductor, Adams restored Roy Harris' Third Symphony to the Los Angeles repertoire, alongside one of his most recent works.

*****

Chills and thrills from Pappano and the Czech Philharmonic

Frank Kuznik, 27th November

In expert hands, a terrifying 12-tone opera and a heroic piano concerto rattle the walls in Prague’s Rudolfinum.

*****

Víkingur Ólafsson and the Philharmonia launch The Anvil's season

David Truslove, 23rd September

Involving performances of standard repertoire by the Philharmonia open Basingstoke’s international concert season.

****1

Sonic brilliance and immersive energy from the Tonhalle in Hamburg

Mengguang Huang, 16th March

At the Elbphilharmonie, a programme of Ligeti, Adams and Lutosławski showcases the power of modern orchestral music to engage both intellectually and emotionally.

*****

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Sam Johnstone

Sam Johnstone is a musician and writer based in Berlin. He has written on classical, contemporary and world music for Sinfini Music, The Cusp and World Music Network, and about the influence of the avant-garde on contemporary music in Germany and Japan whilst studying at Oxford University and SOAS, University of London. Sam blogs at www.spljohnstone.com and tweets at @spljohnstone

Once more, with feeling: Víkingur Ólafsson plays Glass in Berlin