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One of the many names of the Beast should be Sergei Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto No. 2, a no-holds-barred celebration of virtuosity that the Russian barn-stormer Denis Matsuev has made his own. Confronted with this degree of alpha-male swagger, technique and stamina, resistance was futile. ...
Given the adrenaline, athleticism and endurance that a pianist must summon simply to get through the score of Prokofiev’s Second Piano Concerto, let alone to play the notes with such astounding accuracy as we heard here at the Barbican Hall, Denis Matsuev cut a startlingly unruffled figure as he seated himself at the piano. Thirty minutes later – almost, it seemed, as his hands were whipping the closing chords of the Finale tempestoso – he leapt to his feet and rushed to embrace Noseda. If he’d worked up a sweat performing what is one the most technically demanding of all piano concertos, then his urbane calm revealed no hint of it. It was a remarkable performance: after all, one critic at the September 1913 premiere, at which the student Prokofiev was himself the soloist, remarked that the concerto left its listeners ‘frozen with fright, hair standing on end’. ...
Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto no. 2 in G minor has one of the hardest solo parts in the repertoire. But it is not at all hard to listen to when played by a virtuoso of the stature of Denis Matsuev, now almost a veteran of the Russian school of pianists. In the expansive solo of the first movement, which comes so surprisingly early that it seems more centrepiece than cadenza, Matsuev was masterly. ...
Whatever the many strengths of the Shostakovich, it was the terrific performance of Prokofiev’s titanic Second Concerto that will linger on in the memory. It is not a piece that comes out too often, for very good reasons: Valentina Lisitsa in 2015 was a bit of a casualty (review); no such words apply here for a master completely in charge of his instrument. ...
Prokofiev wrote his Piano Concertos with a keen awareness of his own prowess as a pianist, but the Second, in its revised version, is in a virtuoso league of its own, even for him. It is stupendously difficult, with a cadenza – really, more of a fantasia – that effectively takes over the first movement. Step forward Denis Matsuev, who is no stranger to the weight-lifting end of the repertoire, and he took its extremes in his stride. ...
Recent experiences of Denis Matsuev have not been that positive, so it was a pleasure that his International Piano Series recital went a long way to confounding expectations. True, Matsuev’s stage manner isn’t exactly ingratiating and his pragmatic engagement with the piano (here a beautifully voiced Steinway) gives very little away. Also, both halves of his programme were organised to keep the fans waiting for Denis the arsonist-as-virtuoso, which, to judge from the amount of coughing and phone-checking, was the audience’s prime interest. ...
A decade ago now, I reviewed Denis Matsuev’s BMG Melodiya disc Tribute to Horowitz. Heard live in a solo recital he is just as impressive technically; yet the programming here revealed an intent to show us a deeper, more thoughtful side. ...
The Guardian ...
LSO/Gianandrea Noseda – Russian Roots – Denis Matsuev plays Sergei Prokofiev's Second Piano Concerto
classicalsource.comOne of the many names of the Beast should be Sergei Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto No. 2, a no-holds-barred celebration of virtuosity that the Russian barn-stormer Denis Matsuev has made his own. Confronted with this degree of alpha-male swagger, technique and stamina, resistance was futile. ...
LSO and Noseda explore Russian Roots in London
SeenandHeard-InternationalGiven the adrenaline, athleticism and endurance that a pianist must summon simply to get through the score of Prokofiev’s Second Piano Concerto, let alone to play the notes with such astounding accuracy as we heard here at the Barbican Hall, Denis Matsuev cut a startlingly unruffled figure as he seated himself at the piano. Thirty minutes later – almost, it seemed, as his hands were whipping the closing chords of the Finale tempestoso – he leapt to his feet and rushed to embrace Noseda. If he’d worked up a sweat performing what is one the most technically demanding of all piano concertos, then his urbane calm revealed no hint of it. It was a remarkable performance: after all, one critic at the September 1913 premiere, at which the student Prokofiev was himself the soloist, remarked that the concerto left its listeners ‘frozen with fright, hair standing on end’. ...
Russians invade the Philharmonia, led by Matsuev and Kochanovsky
BachtrackProkofiev’s Piano Concerto no. 2 in G minor has one of the hardest solo parts in the repertoire. But it is not at all hard to listen to when played by a virtuoso of the stature of Denis Matsuev, now almost a veteran of the Russian school of pianists. In the expansive solo of the first movement, which comes so surprisingly early that it seems more centrepiece than cadenza, Matsuev was masterly. ...
Superb Prokofiev from Matsuev, Kochanovsky and the Philharmonia
Seen and Heard InternationalWhatever the many strengths of the Shostakovich, it was the terrific performance of Prokofiev’s titanic Second Concerto that will linger on in the memory. It is not a piece that comes out too often, for very good reasons: Valentina Lisitsa in 2015 was a bit of a casualty (review); no such words apply here for a master completely in charge of his instrument. ...
Philharmonia Orchestra – Stanislav Kochanovsky conducts Shostakovich’s Leningrad Symphony – Denis Matsuev plays Prokofiev
Classical SourceProkofiev wrote his Piano Concertos with a keen awareness of his own prowess as a pianist, but the Second, in its revised version, is in a virtuoso league of its own, even for him. It is stupendously difficult, with a cadenza – really, more of a fantasia – that effectively takes over the first movement. Step forward Denis Matsuev, who is no stranger to the weight-lifting end of the repertoire, and he took its extremes in his stride. ...
Denis Matsuev at Royal Festival Hall – Tchaikovsky’s The Seasons, Liszt’s Mephisto Waltz, Schumann’s Kreisleriana and Rachmaninov’s Second Sonata
Recent experiences of Denis Matsuev have not been that positive, so it was a pleasure that his International Piano Series recital went a long way to confounding expectations. True, Matsuev’s stage manner isn’t exactly ingratiating and his pragmatic engagement with the piano (here a beautifully voiced Steinway) gives very little away. Also, both halves of his programme were organised to keep the fans waiting for Denis the arsonist-as-virtuoso, which, to judge from the amount of coughing and phone-checking, was the audience’s prime interest. ...
International Review of the Concert in Royal Festival Hall (London): A Stunning Recital by Denis Matsuev
A decade ago now, I reviewed Denis Matsuev’s BMG Melodiya disc Tribute to Horowitz. Heard live in a solo recital he is just as impressive technically; yet the programming here revealed an intent to show us a deeper, more thoughtful side. ...