Photo Credit: IONUT VACAR
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Pianist Matei Varga has received standing ovations from audiences around the world and superlative reviews from prominent critics. Noting that “it is hard to find the right words to describe the beauty” of Mr. Varga’s playing, the legendary Italian critic Paolo Isotta praised the young artist as a “true poet of the keyboard, a musician of depth, and a genuine artist.” Other critics have found his performances “impressive” (Gramophone, 2016), “magical” (Süddeutsche Zeitung, 2009), “colorful, vivacious [and] engaging” (Le Diapason, 2012), while The New York Observer’s
Robert Gottlieb hailed Mr. Varga as an “excellent pianist”.
Matei Varga’s latest recording, released in 2018 by Sono Luminus and titled
Early Departures topped the Chamber Music - New Releases sales chart on
amazon.com, while still in pre-order. Praised by
BBC Music Magazine as “poignant [and] delightful” and by
Gramophone’s critic Jed Distler as “a beautifully executed and engineered achievement that does [Varga] proud”, this unusual and exciting pairing of lesser known works by Tudor Dumitrescu and Dinu Lipatti and staples of the piano repertoire by Leos Janacek and J.S. Bach, is a tribute to pianist-composers who died young and to those who were transformed by such tragic experiences. Varga’s previous releases include a Naxos album with piano works by George Enescu (where he “tears into the sinew of this music with great bite and forcefulness” -
American Record Guide), as well as two piano and cello collaborations: first with Laura Buruiana on Coviello Classics, performing the two Brahms Cello Sonatas (“an absolutely thrilling, breathtaking marvel to behold” -
Fanfare Magazine) and then with Laura Metcalf, another Sono Luminus release named First Day (where the two artists “make for superb company” -
MusicWeb International). More
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