Florestan wins over Eusebius in Sergei Babayan’s Zankel Hall recital

By Edward Sava-Segal, 04 November 2023

Loading, please wait...

See full listing

“pianissimo notes were not evanescent bubbles, but maintained their shape and weight”

Reviewed at Carnegie Hall: Zankel, New York City on 2 November 2023

Pärt, Für Alina

Liszt, Ballade no. 2 in B minor, S 171

Ryabov, Fantasia in memory of Maria Yudina, Op.21

Rachmaninov, Étude-tableau in E flat minor, Op.39 no.5

Rachmaninov, Étude-tableau in C minor, Op.39 no.1

Rachmaninov, 6 Moments musicaux: Allegretto in E flat minor, Op.16 no.2

Rachmaninov, 6 Moments musicaux: Maestoso in C major, Op.16 no.6

Liszt, Der Müller und der Bach (transcription from Die Schöne Müllerin by Schubert) S 565 no. 2

Liszt, Aufenthalt, transcription from Schubert, S 560/3

Liszt, Auf dem Wasser zu singen, S 558 no. 2 (transcribed from Schubert D 774)

Liszt, Die Stadt, S 560 no. 1 (transcribed from Schubert's Schwanengesang)

Liszt, Gretchen am Spinnrade, D 558 no. 8 (transcribed from Schubert D 118)

Schumann, Kreisleriana, Op.16

Bach, Goldberg Variations, BWV988: Aria

Sergei Babayan, Piano

Superstars Trifonov and Babayan play Bartók with the OSM

Ian Cochrane, 23rd May

Stravinsky and Bartók rarities were the genesis of a superb concert program in Montreal with Finnish conductor Hannu Lintu.

****1

Hannu Lintu makes a brilliant debut with the New York Philharmonic

Cameron Kelsall, 18th November

The Finnish conductor paired works by compatriots Jean Sibelius and Kaija Saariaho with interesting, offbeat selections from Stravinsky and Bartók.

*****

Glorious Rachmaninov from Sergei Babayan and the RLPO

Peter Connors, 28th May

Sergei Babayan dazzles the Liverpool audience in Rachmaninov's ever-popular Second Piano Concerto.

****1

Babayan delivers steel-fingered pianism in marathon Columbus recital

Sam Jacobson, 23rd October

In a wide-ranging recital program, Sergei Babayan champions repertoire from Bach to the late 20th century.

****1

Argerich and Babayan join forces in Cleveland

Sam Jacobson, 30th October

Martha Argerich made her highly-anticipated Cleveland debut in a stunning recital with Sergei Babayan, notably featuring the latter’s ingenious Prokofiev transcriptions for two pianos.

*****

Prokofiev and chill: a concerto binge in New York

Jacob Slattery, 24th February

Valery Gergiev led an athletic pilgrimage through composer-pianist Sergei Prokofiev’s five Piano Concerti, in numerical order, at the Brooklyn Academy of Music.

****1

More reviews...

Edward Sava-Segal

Edward has been living in New York for the last 25 years, one of the reasons being the extraordinarily rich cultural life in this city. He has studied piano and classical music in his early years. He switched later on to computer science and data architecture but he kept an unwavering interest in following the classical music phenomenon here in New York and in his travels. Edward occasionally reviews fine arts events for the most prestigious literary magazine in Romania, his home country.