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Royal
Northern College of Music, Manchester
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"Wild Fantasy" Gershwin CD. "The sheet music looks routine but Graham Scott brings it alive immediately as he plays the actual notes that were once under Gershwin’s own fingers. Wonderful tunes idiomatically delivered. And one can have confidence right away in a pianist who plays the second of Gershwin’s Three Preludes as musically as this, with every inflection just right. The bulk of the CD is given over to Earl Wild’s half-hour Fantasy on Porgy and Bess, a lavish transcription he made and first recorded in 1976. Scott changes gear from the crisp textures of Gershwin’s 1920s pianism to the indulgent textures of the later 19th century. This is an arrangement in the tradition of Liszt and these great melodies can take it. Scott is just as successful in this style and his ending has a few flourishes not in Wild’s own recording. A treasurable infectiously played recital – including the delicious Improvisations." Gramophone
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Victoria Concert Hall, Singapore. Singapore Symphony Orchestra “British pianist Graham Scott showed why he could "take over" Martha Argerich, goddess of temperament, in a concert featuring Richard Strauss's Burleske. There is that knowing intelligence coupled with playful and showy virtuosity present in the pianist and the works (the Burleske and the Liszt)… His duet with principal cellist Liu Peng was very beautifully done indeed, showcasing much eloquence in both musicians. The finale was spritely done, with Scott relishing every chance to showcase the scintillating music.” The Flying Inkpot. Singapore
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Staatsphilharmonie Rheinlandpfalz “Haydn’s Piano Concerto in D major, performed on this occasion by the young English pianist Graham Scott with soaring flawless expertise, was no less impressive. This was followed by the Burleske in D minor by Richard Strauss, the virtuoso showpiece of an admirer of Brahms, performed by the English guest (standing in for Martha Argerich) with great rhythmic elan, technical brilliance and controlled bravado.” Mannheimer Morgen, Germany
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Kennedy
Center, Washington D.C. “The Young Concert Artist series has begun its four-concert season with panache, introducing the brilliant Graham Scott to Washington audiences. His style reflects a maturity and control rare in much older and more experienced musicians. Scott never tries to show off; he simply lets the music - and his musicianship - speak for itself. His program last week was exceedingly difficult consisting of pieces chosen for musical depth, not empty viruosity. Scott is a very big talent, destined for fame because he is interested in making music. Bravo !” Washington Post, USA
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Suntory
Hall,
Tokyo “Scott
opened his recital beautifully with the warm masculine sound of
Beethoven A flat major Sonata, producing well-balanced chords and a
singing quality to each note.
The
conception was mature, expressive and measured, and shaped sensitively
to give inner figurations a life of their own...
One may
expect to hear more of his name in the future.”
Japan
Times
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"This Wigmore Hall recital left me in no doubt after his dazzling performances of Scriabin and Rachmaninoff that here is a pianist who, as a technician and communicator, can vie with anyone of his genereration. We heard a pianist not just thrilling us with his virtuosity but communicating intensely with the full range of colouring and dynamic.” Guardian, London
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New
York
- 92nd St Y “Graham Scott made an immediate impression in the Berg. His playing was focused and driven and his balancing of the work’s light and dark strands was thoroughly worked out, but never sounded contrived. The Scriabin [Black Mass Sonata] was equally gripping. Mr. Scott explored its stark contrasts of expressiveness and rumination and did a fine job of lifting the occasional singing line through Scriabin’s harmonic swirl.” New York Times, USA
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Huntington
Chamber Music Festival, Australian Chamber Orchestra, Australia “Great festivals catalyse instant partnershps, more akin to alchemy than chemistry. Such was the fusion of talent between Wispelwey and Grigoryan and between pianists Ben Martin and Graham Scott in Schubert’s Fantasy in F minor for four hands. Australian Chamber Orchestra principals Helena Rathbone (violin) and Cameron Retchford (cello) teamed with Scott for Ravel’s Piano Trio in a reading of consumate sweetness, accuracy and style." Herald Sun, Australia
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South
Bank Centre, London
“Fiercely
alive, intelligent and fresh, it was the sort of playing that takes
nothing in the score for granted,
that
explores familiar problems unfamiliarly and has you straining on the
edge of your seat to catch the detail, which is curious and interesting
as well as virtuosic and musicianly.
A heavy
programme – Berg and Beethoven to start – it never flagged or tired;
it just got better.
I was
mightily impressed."
The
Independent, London
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Staatsphilharmonie Rheinlandpfalz “Initially the concert was ill-fated. Martha Argerich’s important visit to the Ludwigshafen Feierabendhaus failed to materialise due to her last minute cancellation.The young English pianist Graham Scott filled her place and proved himself a superior and highly authoritative soloist. He was convincing in the Haydn concerto through his refined touch, fluent and well balanced fingerwork and in the second movement through subtlety of expression. He presented the Strauss Burleske on a grand scale with virtuoso control and a vast colour spectrum. The dialogue between Scott and the intensely creative Staatsphilharmonie was particularly inspiring (here as in Haydn).” Rheinpfalz, Germany
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Royal
Concert Hall, Glasgow. Royal Scottish National Orchestra “There was, however, a reward of gold for the tolerant music lover in what was a benchmark performance of the Shostakovich Piano Concerto No.2. Graham Scott gave a brilliant and controlled account. He seems instinctively to know how to balance in favour of self-denial against self-expression. For the listener, the pay-out of such control is rich. In the outer allegros, every note sparkled and the adagio was bathed in moon-light.” Scotsman, Scotland |