Isabelle Faust

“Isabelle Faust is a lyrical soloist, and also finds plenty of energy to convey the rhythmic play of the finale. The other concertante work here is for piano, and Cédric Tiberghien is receptive to its neo-Baroque sensibility. The Prague Philharmonia under Jirí Belohlávek provides idiomatic support, and the strings shine in the one other work here, the short Serenáda No 2 from Martinu's playful Paris years.” The Telegraph, 7th June 2008

“Martinu's Second Violin Concerto is one of his greatest works in the genre. From her very first entry, Isabelle Faust shows a strong feeling for the work's dramatic ebb and flow, and in the supremely beautiful slow movement achieves heights of eloquence. Belohlávek provides magnificently flexible accompaniment and a clear vision of the work's broadly developed structure.” BBC Music Magazine, July 2008 *****

“… this brilliant new account of the Second Concerto (1943), played with verve and a real feeling for the idiom by Isabelle Faust. … her sweet, precise tones allows Martinu's angular lyricism… open out for maximum appeal.” Gramophone Magazine, August 2008

"When he first joined the BBC Symphony Orchestra as principal guest conductor in 1995, the position was regarded as a graveyard as far as future prospects in the UK were concerned: no previous principal guest had ever gone on to hold the top post with it or any other British orchestra. Belohlavek bucked the trend. He has proved that you don't need to be a showman to make an impact. In the concert hall audiences instinctively recognise that his priority is the music, not his ego. His dry Bohemian charm has become more pronounced with age, and the same maturing process has informed his music-making. Andrew Clark,The Financial Times 7th July 2007

"Isabelle Faust makes another exciting foray into the 20th-century repertory (…). Her sound has passion, grit and electricity but also a disarming warmth and sweetness that can unveil the music's hidden strains of lyricism." New York Times

“The whole performance [of the horn trio] has a lightness of touch and an athletic exuberance that are totally convincing.” Andrew Clements, The Guardian, 22nd August 2008 ****

“It's a superb version of the piece by any standard, the slow movements absolutely saturated in intense Romantic melancholy but fleet and agile in scherzo and finale. Faust and Melnikov and scarcely less revelatory in the G major Violin Sonata… Very generous in terms of its duration, this is a disc where one truly feels every note has been given the space to make its effect.” BBC Music Magazine, September 2008 *****

“Teunis van der Zwart used a natural horn from Lorenz built in 1845. He is an astonishingly accomplished and musical player, and he has a superb supporting team.” Gramophone Magazine, 2008 Awards Issue

"Alexander Melnikov's bright, at times almost puckish, piano playing is perfectly matched by the violinist Isabel Faust. She is one of the few violinists who virtually always hits the note dead-centre, and her rapport with Melnikov is clear." Rob Cowan, The Independent