Paul Lewis excels in Bach-Busoni, Liszt and Mussorgsky at Zankel

By David Allen, 28 March 2014

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Reviewed at Carnegie Hall: Zankel, New York City on 26 March 2014

Bach, Ich ruf' zu dir, Herr Jesu Christ (Orgel-Büchlein) in F Minor, BWV639 (arr. Busoni)

Beethoven, Piano Sonata no. 13 in E flat major "quasi una fantasia", Op.27 no.1

Bach, Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland - chorale prelude in G Minor, BWV659 (arr. Busoni)

Beethoven, Piano Sonata no. 14 in C sharp minor "Moonlight", Op.27 no.2

Liszt, Schlaflos! Frage und Antwort, S 203

Liszt, Unstern! Sinistre, disastro, S 208

Liszt, RW Venezia, S 201

Mussorgsky, Pictures at an Exhibition

Paul Lewis, Piano

Paul Lewis balances delicacy with power in understated RLPO Beethoven

Glyn Mon Hughes, 12th March

Understatement is key in Paul Lewis' interpretation of Beethoven's Third Piano Concerto with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic under Adam Hickox.

***11

Sprechstimme and yodelling: Schubert’s birthday bash at Wigmore Hall

Mark Pullinger, 31st January

A double-header celebrates Schubert featuring Allan Clayton and Paul Lewis in Winterreise and the Austrian folk/rock band The Erllkings.

****1

Denève, Lewis and the Netherlands Radio Phil in Utrecht

Laurence Vittes, 23rd January

At TivoliVredenburg’s Grote Zaal: a program of Beethoven, Liszt, and Schumann that, intentionally or not, invited reflection on long-range musical continuity.

***11

Concerto Budapest delivers Beethoven with high-octane fire in Dublin

Andrew Larkin, 29th November

András Keller’s orchestra offers intensity, finesse and sheer dramatic sweep, from Tchaikovsky’s infernal tragedy to a Beethoven Fifth Symphony driven with exhilarating momentum.

****1

Magnificent Beethoven and Sibelius, intriguing Nørgård in Manchester

Peter Connors, 22nd March

Per Nørgård’s Eighth Symphony is the unusual opener in a programme of magnificent Beethoven and Sibelius from the BBC Philharmonic, Paul Lewis and John Storgårds at the Bridgewater Hall.

****1

Something close to perfection: Lewis, Storgårds and the BBC Phil

Phil Parker, 24th January

Though a perfect concert is hard to define, you know when you’ve attended one – and Beethoven and Shostakovich from the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra provide the proof.

*****

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David Allen

David is a PhD student at Columbia University, where he studies international history. A lapsed pianist and organist, he writes on concerts on both sides of the Atlantic, and blogs at Unpredictable Inevitability.