Vestard Shimkus delivers exhilarating Dreamscapes

By Andrew Larkin, 14 June 2018

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“Shimkus didn’t shirk in taking on the virtuosic demands”

Reviewed at Great Guild Hall, Riga on 13 June 2018

Bach, 9 Chorale preludes (transcribed Busoni)

Shimkus, Dreamscapes: 9 Etudes for piano

Vestard Shimkus, Piano

LA Phil celebrates the California spirit with Andrés Orozco-Estrada

Cameron Kelsall, 3rd May

The program features Maria Dueñas in Korngold's Violin Concerto and a moving tribute to LA native Michael Tilson Thomas

****1

BBC Philharmonic’s bold but unbalanced Stravinsky and Adams

Leighton Jones, 1st May

Balance issues mar an otherwise compelling programme from John Storgårds and the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra.

***11

Yuja Wang with the Mahler CO: between lyricism and volatility

Edward Sava-Segal, 1st May

Yuja Wang and the Mahler Chamber Orchestra frame Chopin’s E minor concerto with two Prokofiev works, the First Symphony and Second Piano Concerto.

****1

Eric Lu brings scintillating Chopin to Singapore

Chang Tou Liang, 1st May

A world premiere by Wang Chenwei, familiar Chopin and a rare outing for Bartók’s Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta make for satisfying fare in Jahcun Wong’s Singapore Symphony programme.

****1

Denis Kozhukhin: captivating storytelling with the London Symphony

Clare Varney, 1st May

At the Konzerthaus Dortmund, Sir Antonio Pappano and the LSO are joined by Russian pianist Denis Kozhukhin to plunge into the depths of despair in Bernstein’s melancholic The Age of Anxiety.

***11

Elim Chan and TSO reign supreme in Shostakovich’s Ninth

Michelle Assay, 30th April

After a Rachmaninov concerto that resembles a harangue, an uneven Toronto Symphony programme comes into focus with a sharply characterised Shostakovich Ninth.

***11

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Andrew Larkin

Andrew Larkin is a pianist, composer and teacher from Dublin. Educated at Dublin and at Cambridge, he has performed all around Europe and Mexico. He currently teaches piano and composition in Dublin.

Vestard Shimkus delivers exhilarating Dreamscapes in Riga