What the critics are saying about Virtuoso SCHUBERT Album (Eroica JDT3108) and pianist ZEYNEP Ucbasaran:
"In her new Schubert disc she realises the often orchestral textures with a real feeling for the right balance between the different elements, and maintains a limpid tone for all the long singing lines. The actual sound, therefore, is always convincingly Schubertian. Her natural gifts as an interpreter extend beyond this, however; in each of the four movements of the mighty A major sonata she establishes a tempo which allows the music to expand and express itself simply and strongly; nothing is exaggerated or pulled out of shape. I would single out the finale in particular as a piece of supremely musical playing; it just flows naturally from her fingers.
This is a finely conceived, thoroughly Schubertian-sounding performance which rises to an exceptionally good finale, and the "Wanderer" is perhaps finer still.
The recording is rich and full-toned and, as in her Liszt album, Ucbasaran provides notes that are clear and go straight to the point. In an age where you can easily pass for an "original" interpreter by disrupting the musical line and bringing out "different" inner voices, I can only salute pure musicianship such as Ucbasaran's which puts itself at the service of the composer; this is the sort of art which is likely to grow while other supposed phenomena blaze and fall by the wayside. I suspect we will gradually hear more and more from this pianist."
Christopher Howell, MusicWeb, London
"She plays two works by Franz Schubert: his profound and noble Sonata in A major and the visionary Wanderer-Fantasy. Both pieces are awe-inspiring in their scope and demanding for the performer but Zeynep Ucbasaran plays superbly and intelligently throughout."
John Pitt, New Classics, UK
"... there is plenty of insight with which to draw the music together and to maintain a sense of propulsion. We have here the Wanderer Fantasy and the Sonata in A, a very fair choice of Schubert at his best, and even today gripping us with its sustained quality."
Basil Ramsey, Music & Vision, UK
"This disc shows off the versatility of Turkish pianist Zeynep Ucbasaran.. She takes on the most Apollinian of Schubert's three late (1828) piano sonatas, the A Major, whose second movement Andantino features some haunting writing melodically and polyphonically, with a kind of ferocious homage a Bach. She keeps a light hand on the proceedings, emphasizing the lyrical energies in this monumental piece. I found myself much admiring her technique, often forgetting about the import of the music."
Gary Lemco, Audiophile Audition
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Pianist Zeynep Ucbasaran started her music studies at age four at the Istanbul Conservatory. She has her Concert Artist Diploma from the Liszt Academy of Music, Budapest. She obtained her graduate and advanced graduate degrees in Piano Performance from Hochschule für Musik, Freiburg, Germany and from the University of Southern California, Los Angeles. Among other professional awards, Ucbasaran was a prizewinner in the 1996 and 2000 Los Angeles Liszt Competitions. She has given many recitals and concerts in Turkey, Egypt, Hungary, Germany, Slovenia, and in the United States.
More information: www.zupiano.com.
Check out the artist's website:
http://www.zupiano.com
Track List:
1. Allegro
2. Andantino
3. Scherzo
4. Rondo
5. Allegro Con Fuoco Ma Non Troppo
6. Adagio
7. Presto
8. Allegro
Suggested CDs:Other Genres:
"In her new Schubert disc she realises the often orchestral textures with a real feeling for the right balance between the different elements, and maintains a limpid tone for all the long singing lines. The actual sound, therefore, is always convincingly Schubertian. Her natural gifts as an interpreter extend beyond this, however; in each of the four movements of the mighty A major sonata she establishes a tempo which allows the music to expand and express itself simply and strongly; nothing is exaggerated or pulled out of shape. I would single out the finale in particular as a piece of supremely musical playing; it just flows naturally from her fingers.
This is a finely conceived, thoroughly Schubertian-sounding performance which rises to an exceptionally good finale, and the "Wanderer" is perhaps finer still.
The recording is rich and full-toned and, as in her Liszt album, Ucbasaran provides notes that are clear and go straight to the point. In an age where you can easily pass for an "original" interpreter by disrupting the musical line and bringing out "different" inner voices, I can only salute pure musicianship such as Ucbasaran's which puts itself at the service of the composer; this is the sort of art which is likely to grow while other supposed phenomena blaze and fall by the wayside. I suspect we will gradually hear more and more from this pianist."
Christopher Howell, MusicWeb, London
"She plays two works by Franz Schubert: his profound and noble Sonata in A major and the visionary Wanderer-Fantasy. Both pieces are awe-inspiring in their scope and demanding for the performer but Zeynep Ucbasaran plays superbly and intelligently throughout."
John Pitt, New Classics, UK
"... there is plenty of insight with which to draw the music together and to maintain a sense of propulsion. We have here the Wanderer Fantasy and the Sonata in A, a very fair choice of Schubert at his best, and even today gripping us with its sustained quality."
Basil Ramsey, Music & Vision, UK
"This disc shows off the versatility of Turkish pianist Zeynep Ucbasaran.. She takes on the most Apollinian of Schubert's three late (1828) piano sonatas, the A Major, whose second movement Andantino features some haunting writing melodically and polyphonically, with a kind of ferocious homage a Bach. She keeps a light hand on the proceedings, emphasizing the lyrical energies in this monumental piece. I found myself much admiring her technique, often forgetting about the import of the music."
Gary Lemco, Audiophile Audition
----------------------------------------------------------------
Pianist Zeynep Ucbasaran started her music studies at age four at the Istanbul Conservatory. She has her Concert Artist Diploma from the Liszt Academy of Music, Budapest. She obtained her graduate and advanced graduate degrees in Piano Performance from Hochschule für Musik, Freiburg, Germany and from the University of Southern California, Los Angeles. Among other professional awards, Ucbasaran was a prizewinner in the 1996 and 2000 Los Angeles Liszt Competitions. She has given many recitals and concerts in Turkey, Egypt, Hungary, Germany, Slovenia, and in the United States.
More information: www.zupiano.com.
Check out the artist's website:
http://www.zupiano.com
Track List:
1. Allegro
2. Andantino
3. Scherzo
4. Rondo
5. Allegro Con Fuoco Ma Non Troppo
6. Adagio
7. Presto
8. Allegro
Suggested CDs:Other Genres:
- CLASSICAL: Traditional
- CLASSICAL: Contemporary
- FEATURING PIANO