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Sophia Lisovskaya

Piano

And what a star Sophia Lisovskaya, solo pianist, turned out to be...
Michelle Cook, 17/10/11 - Gloucestershire Gazette

Chipping Sodbury Music Society
We were very fortunate to be able to engage Sophia Lisovskaya, at less than six hours notice, to play for us at our opening concert of the season; the original recitalist had succumbed to chicken pox and was unable to perform. And what a star Sophia Lisovskaya, solo pianist, turned out to be...
Her opening work was Beethoven’s ‘Pathétique’ Piano Sonata no. 8 op. 13 and Sophia played the slow introductory theme with great sensitivity. Her technical skills were evident in her playing of the Allegro with its complex themes. The Adagio movement began with the famous cantabile melody and there was a richness in her playing of the subsequent themes. The sonata closed with the brilliantly executed Rondo.
The piano transcription by Liszt of one of Schumann's best-loved songs, 'Widmung', allowed Sophia to demonstrate her compassion for the work with both power and balance between the right and left hands. There was a subtle hint of Schubert's Ave Maria melody at the end of the piece.
The first half of the concert ended with three pieces by Chopin. The Mazurka in E minor had a waltz-like style and concluded with impeccably executed arpeggio patterns leading to a very quiet close. The tempo of the popular A minor Mazurka brought out the sweet, flowing melody and gave it a dream-like quality. Finally, Chopin’s Barcarolle Op. 60 was given a beautifully elegant and expressive performance.
The second half of the concert was devoted to Tchaikovsky’s ‘The Seasons’ Op. 37. Sophia selected nine of the twelve seasons and each was portrayed in a unique style. It is difficult to highlight any particular ‘season’ but August Harvest and December Christmas painted evocative pictures and all were played with outstanding command and control. The enthusiastic applause from the audience was matched by Sophia’s own obvious enjoyment of the evening, and she will receive a warm welcome at the Society when she returns in future.
The next concert will be on Tuesday 8 November 2011. The Batignano Trio of flute, bass clarinet and guitar will be presenting a programme entitled “Northern Lights”.

Swaledale Festival
Peter Bevan - Darlington and Stockton Times, 17/6/11

You can read the review of Sophia's recital for Swaledale Festival on the 10th June 2011 here

American Record Guide
MORIN

"Here is another pretty young Russian pianist, and this one has genuine talent. Lisovskaya was trained in Moscow and London and has appeared in the major European cities, but apparently not yet in the US. Apart from Sonata 4, composed in 1903, the 26 pieces are presented in the order written - from Opus 2 of 1888-89 to Vers la Flamme of 1914 - which allows her to show the development of Scriabin’s style. It’s devilishly hard to convey adequately his unique mix of mysticism and sexuality, and I’m impressed by how well she does it. She’s technically sound and plays with strength, well-judged tempos, nicely rounded phrases, and a good sense of tone and colour. She’s appropriately lyrical in the early works and manages the surging ecstasies of the sonata and Vers la Flamme with power and beauty, coming close to the standard set by Sofronitzky and Richter for these pieces. These are outstanding performances, recorded in exceptionally good sound."

Deal Town Hall - Kent Federation of Amenity Societies
Jack Woolford

In an attempt to promote and augment harmony amongst member-societies, a piano recital by Moscow-born and London-trained Sophia Lisovskaya, an internationally acclaimed virtuoso, known to us in Kent through the Whitstable Music Society (which happens also to be chaired by KFAS Chairman John Walker) was held in Deal Town Hall on Saturday October 4 2008. 

Sophia particularly delights in playing the Chopin nocturnes, preludes and studies, which are less well known than the waltzes and polonaises.  Though slight in build, the sheer physical power and equally sheer tiniest whisper of sound, both mirrored in her beautiful facial expressions, are spell binding. How such faultless control of blindingly difficult technical problems can co-exist with deep emotional response and commitment is unfathomable – and consequently enchanting.

Sophia particularly champions the preludes and studies of the less well-known Scriabin, contemporary of Rachmaninov. Although musically a descendant of Chopin, with nods in the direction of Debussy, he developed a powerful individual style of prodigious technical difficulty, alternating wild harmonic savagery with melting, lyrical, tenderness.  The preludes and studies are disarmingly brief but “Vers La Flamme”, with which Sophia climaxed her recital, is as full of fire as its name suggests.

Romantic Chopin and Scriabin we knew from Whitstable, but what of Classical Beethoven, with whose Sonata Pathetique (Op 13) Sophia dared to begin her recital in Deal.   Shades of Schnabel, Brendel Barenboim … Beethoven’s very name arouses expectation beyond the ordinary and demands courage as well as competence, to stand up to inevitable comparison.  Sophia need have no fear.  From the explosively dramatic opening chord, through the warmly comforting slow movement to the diabolically fiery finale she was superb, establishing a rapport with the audience unique in my octogenarian experience.

Sophia Lisovskaya at the Wigmore
David Alker - Musical Opinion

"Russian pianist Sophia Lisovskaya, who studied at the Royal Academy of Music, presented a rewarding recital at the Wigmore Hall on 1 May. Bach’s First Partita BWV 852 opened up a faultless technique. The liquid flow of the Allemande still had depth with phrasing and dynamics finely balanced. If the Corrente flowed like a torrent, bouncy, light yet with a complex drama permeating throughout, then the repose of the Sarabande stemmed the flight with tiny hints of rubato effectively shaping the movement. Her trills throughout were a perceptive part of the music aided by a meticulous skill that never wavered.

Lisovskaya’s interpretative power was no better felt that in the works of Scriabin. Full of expression and dramatic edge, her choice of five Preludes from Opuses 11 and 16 were distinctly coloured. No 6 of the former, dark and penetrating, No 1 of the latter, delicate and refined. The sensuality of Vers la flamme was countered by a great moment of tension built up with remarkable composure. Lisovskaya’s performances were powerful indeed, embracing Scriabin’s kaleidoscopic detail.

Whatever physical limitations Schumann may have possessed in his desire to fulfill evermore expressive keyboard sonorities Lisovskaya demonstrated her ability to overcome them in his Fantasy. The warmth of her playing seized the gamut of emotion contained in the work to produce a lucid yet unmistakably mature account to end her stunning recital."

Piano News
Stefan Dettlinger

"The beauty of Lisovskaya’s playing is ravishing."

Classics Today
Jed Distler

"Moscow-born pianist Sophia Lisovskaya has what it takes to bring this music to life: a beautiful, robust sonority, plus secure, well-drilled fingers that can take care of anything and make it sound easy."

Le Monde de la Musique
Michel Le Naour

"There is no denying that Lisovskaya possesses the sensitivity and technique that allows her to step beyond the technical pitfalls Scriabin's music is littered with"

Musical Opinion

"(Rachmaninov’s) introspective fifth Prelude (Op. 32) was a work of art under Lisovskaya… "

BBC Music Magazine
Adrian Jack

 "I like her in the dreamy little pieces...Lisovskaya can certainly be sensitive."

Vestmanlands Lans Tidning, Sweden
Birgit Ahlberg-Hyse

"Take for example the Rachmaninov Piano Concerto no. 2. With the inherent dynamics and resolute touch that Sophia Lisovskaya proved to command, she still gave the piano parts full justice, as in the assiduous chords of the final phrases in the first movement. But surely the most delicious passages were those that she performed with smaller constellations, or with the strings just as an accent, like in the opening of the second movement. And surely it would have been delightful to hear the piano alone afterwards, in an ever so short encore, chiefly to get a further experience of Sophia Lisovskaya's intimate relation to the piano. Not even thirty years of age, she already possesses a natural authority as a musician, but in a humble and discreet manner."