Schulhoff's Piano Concerto was the highlight of last week's Czech Philharmonic series.
"
Haló Noviny, Prague
"Cristina Ortiz est douée d'un
tempérament de feu et d'une technique prodigieuse…. Ici,
tout était parfait (Beethoven's Piano Concerto # 4),
mélodiquement et rythmiquement, couronné de couleurs et
de brilliance, servi par un toucher perlé et soutenu par une
énergie serrée. Bref, rien ne manquait à.&
l'appel, pour faire de ce moment de musique une fête que le
public ovationna longuement tandis que C. O. le remerciait avec deux
bis d'une suprême élégance. "
L'Express, Neuchâtel
"Cristina Ortiz … opened the 2003-04 Cliburn
concert series with a demonstration of intensely personal pianism
… a fascinating and generous serving of little-known music by
20th-century Brazilian composers … She imbued Papillons'
(Schumann's) swiftly changing sketches with a winning combination of
warmth and brilliance. Albeniz's Cadiz, Cordoba and Seguidillas were
also presented with relentless drama and pronounced but effective
flexibility of tempo … Ortiz proved herself an extraordinary
interpreter of Chopin in a set of four Etudes from Opus 25. Here, as in
the Schumann, she produced hypnotic, searing warmth in the Etudes in
A-flat, E minor and C-sharp minor. "
Fort Worth Star Telegram
"A program of considerable passion and lyric beauty opened the Cliburn
Concerts season … Ms. Ortiz's atmospheric performance of their
music (Vianna, Fernandez and Guarnieri) revealed that there are some
real musical gems in the South American nation … A lovely lyric
touch, rhythmic vigor and passion were often displayed in Ms. Ortiz's
account of the … four Etudes by Chopin from Op. 25. "
The Dallas Morning News
"Brazilian-born Cristina Ortiz's fiery athleticism
matched Rachmaninov's excessive note spinning. One felt hearing her
playing that this was not merely another run through, but as much a
voyage of discovery for her as for an audience unfamiliar with the work
(1st Piano Concerto). The Andante was where Rachmaninov seemed to find
his true voice, and Ortiz changed tone and mood, playing with dark and
somber tones which were perfectly complemented by a rich dark hued
carpet of strings & Ortiz was more than a match for the technical
demands of this rapid-fire finale, switching up several gears to play
with an almost manic ferocity. She rightly received an ovation for her
dazzling performance."
"Seen & Heard" Concert Review, London
"The highlight was the appearance of pianist
Cristina Ortiz in Ravel's Concerto in G major. The orchestra really
took off, spurred on by the soloist's fiery playing, which oozed
personality. The slow movement showed some superb musicianship and
sensitive exchanges between orchestra and soloist."
The Citizen, Cheltenham
"Ortiz’s performance (Prokofiev’s 3rd
Piano Concerto) exquisitely balanced, was accomplished, inspired and
utterly satisfying. Her piano swaggered percussively, its chords choppy
in the face of ponderously bouncy orchestral passages, then suddenly,
like sunlight flashing from storm clouds, it rippled, shimmered, danced
against the delicately disciplined weight of the full orchestra, full
of texture and colour."
Daytona Beach News
"Ortiz balances athletic brilliance and soulful
warmth in her performance of Prokofiev’s 3rd. She clearly
considered herself a part of the orchestra, evident in her constant
connection with conductor Fabio Mechetti, a fellow Brazilian, and in
her reaction to the other musicians on stage."
Florida Times-Union, Palm Beach
"The first half of the program closed with
Prokofiev’s 3rd Piano Concerto. Soloist Ortiz is a veteran
performer, with a prodigious technique that she puts totally in the
service of the music. Every note is audible, even in the most
complicated passage work. The phrasing is sensitive and the rhythm
precise. This is a wonderful performance of a wonderful concerto."
Palm Beach Daily News
"Seldom have I heard Haydn’s Piano Concerto
in D played with as much fire as by Cristina Ortiz. And she sounded
absolutely fantastic in Shostakovich’s Concerto No 1 for Piano,
Trumpet and Orchestra. Cristina Ortiz is all passion and energy. One
can almost see the music floating through her body and what she gets
out of the piano! Interesting from the first note to the last, in a
humorous interpretation full of energy and space."
De Standaard, Amsterdam
"Ortiz possesses, without a doubt, the technical
and interpretative skills to také on the difficulties of this
work [Prokofiev Piano Concerto No 3] The stunning rapidity of the scale
passages, the dynamism of the chord sequences, the expressive contrast
of the melodic interludes posed no obstacle for the visiting pianist.
She accomplished all these with impressive ease."
El Mercurio, Santiagodel Chile
"The true queen of the evening was Cristina Ortiz,
who is considered one of the best pianists at international level.
International critics mention not only her virtuosic talent, but also
her intuitively musical refinement, warm sensibility and extraordinary
gift for colourful playing."
Il Mattino, Sorrento
"Ortiz brings more than just magnificent technique
to the concert experience; she brings artistry. Through her effective
phrasing and absorption with the music she is performing, Ortiz brings
the listener into her world and that`s what live performance is all
about. Let`s hope she comes back again and again."
Syracuse Post Standard
"The highlight was the pianist Cristina Ortiz, a
bundle of Brazilian emotion … here is someone who could never
play the same work the same way, two times together. Each time she
finds something different to enthuse over."
Croydon Advertiser, UK
And then came Cristina Ortiz playing
Rachmaninov’s famous 2nd Piano Concerto … Her
interpretation was deeper and less restrained than could be glimpsed in
a brief encounter … the notes spilling out at such a speed and
with such passion that it left me gasping, having forgotten to
breathe."
The Independent on Sunday, London
" E que bom foi ouvir Cristina tocar música
brasileira! Com os seus muitos anos de Europa, ela podia ter se
esquecido disso. Não se esqueceu. E pelas mãos de uma
artista
que evolui sempre, tivemos momentos preciosos com Lorenzo Fernandez,
Canargo Guarnieri, Fructuoso Vianna... A 2ª Suite Brasileira, de
Lorenzo, apareceu deliciosa na versão de Cristina, no seu
refinamento superior. Estava ali a combinação certa de
lirismo, de vivacidade rítmica, de poesia. Igualmente
valorizadas foram as peças de Guarnieri e de Fructuoso, fechando
com um virtuosístico Corta-Jaca, Os nossos pianistas jovens
deviam estar ali, para aprender como achar o caminho em peças
às vezes banalizadas
por interpretações prosáicas. "
O Globo, Rio de Janeiro
« Se laissant aller aux épanchements
d’une sensibilité de bon aloi dans les rares moments de
détente, Cristina Ortiz, sans jamais céder à la
moindre trace de mauvais goût, nous a offert, bien qu’on
l’eût sentie parfois bien près des larmes, un
véritable feu d’artifice, se jouant des pièges
accumulés par Rachmaninov (3e Concerto) et faisant
littéralement crépiter sous ses doigts de fer une musique
qui, exécutée de manière aussi prestigieuse, est
irrésistible. La pianiste avait la chance d’être
dirigée par Vladimir Ashkenazy qui, conscient à chaque
instant des problèmes qui pouvaient se poser, a
été pour elle mieux qu’un partenaire, un
véritable complice. Le public de Stresa, ne s’y est pas
trompé: il a fait un triomphe amplement mérité
à cette jeune et superbe artiste.»
Le Figaro, Chaud, chaud, le piano! Par Pierre-Petit
"...Son Rachmaninov (2e Concerto) était
inédit, insolite, nouveau. Un Rachmaninov gigantesque,
formidable. Un Rachmaninov plus Rachmaninov que Rachmaninov même.
On décida de l’aimer. On l’admira, on
l’applaudit, on l’ovationna et on la rappela maintes fois
sur la scène. Ce soir-là, Cristina Ortiz fit
l’événement."
Mosaïque, Le Caire
"La capacità e grandezza della Ortiz
(Concerto #1 di Rachmaninov) sembra proprio quella di contenere la
drammaticità di questo virtuosismo tutto esteriore in un
minimalismo sempre calibrato ed estremamente espressivo."
Giornale del Popolo,Lugano
"I prefer this sound (Ortiz’s Consort of
London, recorded in The Maltings, Snape) and the playing that goes with
it. Ortiz’s touch and timing are excellent - for all its more
delicate effect, achieved without any loss of energy and wit. The
Allegretto (Mozart’s K459) is beautifully shaped and expressive,
and the finale, for all its neatness, has plenty of drive: indeed, this
performance offers a model of style as far as playing on modern
instruments is concerned and the recording with its wide dynamic range
is satisfying in its balance and overall sound. The B flat Concerto
(Mozart’s K456) is also satisfying in its blend of energy and
poise, while ensemble is secure. The beautiful slow movement, a set of
variations on a poignant theme in G minor, is not less well done,
moving along at just the right pace for Andante un poco sostenuto with
some fine wind playing, and the finale has ample zest. The Rondo in D
major is played with a pleasant bounce."
Gramophone Record Review, London
"Rarely has Cristina Ortiz sounded more
delightfully herself, more vivacious, fluent and individual. &she
paces her opening with a most natural grace and mobility. The first
hair-raising veloce flourish is suitably volatile, and the
climax of the development has a superb fire and impetus to its martial
phrases. An exceptionally bold rit prepares us, too, for a cadenza that is not only an intriguing amalgam of both versions but one
that is most intricately phrased and voiced: a far cry from the noisy toccata offered by less sensitive pianists. The climax is sonorous and musicianly, and in the skittering brilliance of the scherzando
variation the notes spin and dance off the pianist`s fingers like so
much cotton. The finale too, is dazzling in its effortless verve and
facility. The tempo come prima (a daunting cascade even for the
transcendentally equipped) is thrown off with carefree abandon, and
Miss Ortiz`s of flicking off the tail ends of the following arpeggios
charmingly and capriciously switching the melodic emphasis is witty and
engaging.Ivan Fischer provides a first-class partnership, and the
recording is beautifully natural and realistically balanced. This is
very much as one would hear this Concerto (Rachmaninov's # 3)
in the concert hall .This is certainly a performance far more fleet and
musicianly than the majority of recordings in the catalogue. Cristina
Ortiz adds three enterprisingly chosen Études-tableaux,
relishing their dark-hued introspection after so much high-powered
virtuosity. ... the G minor Étude is given, like its companions,
with all of this pianist`s recognizable impulsiveness and affection."
Hi-Fi News Record Review, London
