reviews

“(...) masterly control of rhythm and sonority (...) a perfect disc.”
Classica ****

"A marvelous disc to have in one’s collection."

“A less expert pianist might make this music seem rambling or self-indulgent, but Stavy has an ear for its organic growth and he keeps the listener in a prolonged state of anticipation. […] Stavy is attuned to Tishchenko's ambiguous and often rarefied world, and, no less important, he owns the technical skills required to prevent the composer's polyphonic writing from becoming clotted or clouded.
Raymond Tuttle

“This is great piano music and one can understand the decision of Nicolas Stavy, who has played much Liszt, to tackle the Russian composer. The competition on disc is limited but of high quality and exclusively Russian [...]. Nicolas Stavy does not outclass these eminently Russian interpretations, dry and highly strung as they are, but he adapts them to the Western school, with virtuosity, panache and flexibility.”
Resmusica

“One thing that is patently clear on this new disc is that pianist Nicolas Stavy most certainly does stand out from the crowd. From the opening bars of Britten's Diversions it is clear this is going to be an impressive and enthralling disc…”
MusicWeb International

“The final pages bring a flood of keyboard virtuosity, in a teeming cadence brilliantly rendered by Nicolas Stavy.”
Anaclase

“Stunning in the virtuoso final pages, Nicolas Stavy delivers these sensitive and sensual works with great elegance. The Orchestre National de Lille accompanies with passion and distinction. A really superb recording!”
Marc Laborde – Utmisol

"Very classy playing, rich in colours, delivered tastefully and without striving for effect, the main (and not the least) merit of which was to bring out Gabriel Dupont’s unique musical style.”
Frédéric Gaussin – La lettre du musicien – April 2014. Read the review

"The two pieces (Funérailles and Du Berceau à la tombe) by Liszt, hugely profound and transcendental in their expressive meaning, were played with superb technique and, notably, a highly incisive left hand in fast passages. They also gave room the expression of deep introspection. Stavy’s playing, however, never descended into excess emotion or rubato, but was shot through at all times with tension and strength. The sound Stavy drew from his piano had the power of heavy artillery, with impressive tremolos and a meticulous control of crescendos and decrescendos. The massive aural torrent seemed to issue from the very depths of the instrument, while Liszt’s narrative line in these programmatic character pieces remained perfectly clear. This was an absolutely thrilling concert, brimming with emotion.”
Article in Codolario following a recital at the 2013 Cuenca (Spain) festival

“Not to mince words, this was Liszt playing of the highest order… worthy of vintage ranking. (…) Is Nicolas Stavy France’s Nelson Freire?... “The alpha and omega of the plethora of discs that have marked the bicentenary of Liszt’s birth are the fabulous lesson in style offered by Lugansky and Stavy’s deeply affecting exercise in Lisztian poetry. Both “desert island discs” strike a perfect balance between emotion and technique.”
Gilles d'Heyres – Concertonet – Read the review

“Sounding quite unlike the standardized sound of a Steinway concert grand, Nicolas Stavy’s piano gives the music of Brahms its true voice – a voice as strange as a foreign language yet as familiar as one’s native tongue.”
Gilles Macassar – Télérama – CD awarded an FFFF rating

“…a vision which, with all its differences and personal ideas, holds up well against those of pianists such as Katchen, Lupu or Perahia.”
Classica **** for the Brahms CD – Read the review

“Nicolas Stavy brings out the individuality of these works perfectly, without neglecting their natural poetry, especially in the beautifully played op. 18 Variations…”
Etienne Moreau – Diapason

“Nicolas Stavy switches from one mood to another with ease, always maintaining a warm, carefully nurtured relationship with the instrument and a rigorous mental grip...”
Gérard Mannoni – Classica

“The pianist’s exacting standards, his depth of thought, the magnificent sonority and remarkable singing quality that he brings to his playing raise these superb works to the level of undoubted masterpieces. Hélène de Montgéroult finds here an interpreter entirely worthy of these marvellous compositions.”
Christian Lorandin – Resmusica –2008

“We particularly recommend the very intelligently played 3rd Sonata and especially its Largo movement, where Stavy reaches levels of profundity, intensity and emotion worthy of the finest versions – a great moment on this disc, at least for me...”
Resmusica.com, October 2007

"Nicolas Stavy manages to create an entire world, by the sobriety of his approach and by his close attention to the evolution of the melody, both of which contribute to the emotion communicated in his playing (…) He shows a deep understanding of the composer’s world, worthy of Luisada or Brendel.”
Diapason – May 2006

“Nicolas Stavy offers an appealing, sober and straightforward interpretation, inward-looking rather than played for effect, and all the more charged with emotion. (…) One of the best versions available.”
Marc Vignal (reviewing the Haydn CD) – Le Monde de la Musique – June 2006

“In the intelligence of its construction and its pianistic finish, his light-filled and flowing reading of the Variations calls to mind Jean-Claude Pennetier’s success (Lyrinx). Follow Nicolas Stavy closely.”
Pianiste, June 2006

“At 28 years of age, how can one have such experience of despair, of suffering, of mystery, of fraternal tenderness? The audience was overwhelmed, hearing Schubert’s entire world unfold.”
Philippe Andriot, May 2004

“That evening, as, no doubt, at the other performances, Robin Renucci, spectacles perched on his nose, listened deeply absorbed to the tightly controlled passion of an inspired Nicolas Stavy!”
Theothea, March 2005

“There’s no question but that this talented young pianist is a rising star who has taken his place amongst the current pianistic elite.”
Westfälische Rundschau – Klavier Ruhr Festival 2001

“An intoxicating musical moment...”
Westdeutsche Allgemeine, July 2001