Media

---

With Susan Gritton. 2000

Hyperion CDA67110 / Re-released in 2007 on Helios - CDH55360

‘[Fanny Mendelssohn's] reputation deserves the kind of boost this excellent disc offers. Both Eugene Asti and Susan Gritton get to the heart of these pieces' (BBC Music Magazine)

'Pleasant, delightful ... an excellent record: enterprising programmes, fresh young artists, fine presentation, typical Hyperion' (Gramophone)

'Beautiful, direct, simple and memorable new song[s] ... Asti provides    the beautifully limpid, balanced accompaniment you imagine Fanny herself might have played' (International Record Review)

With Susan Gritton and Stephan Loges. 2002

Hyperion CDA67249 / Re-released in 2007 on Helios CDH55275

'[Stephan Loges] brings to his contributions the youthful warmth of his attractively vibrant baritone and his wonderful feeling for line and word … Lieder singing of the highest calibre … delightful … it is good to have all these songs, long hidden in libraries, available on CD’ (Gramophone)

‘Perfect diction makes the lyrics shiver with anticipation … sparkling accompaniment by Eugene Asti’ (Independent on Sunday)

‘This venture is invaluable, and thoroughly enjoyable’ (The Guardian)

‘Eloquent singing … ideally sensitive accompaniments’ (Music Week)

‘Anyone who cares about Lieder singing and repertoire must have this disc … artful, sensitive, attentive, technically assured performances – absolutely first rate’ (ClassicsToday.com)

‘All three performers are excellent … this is a delightful issue; I shall often return to it’ (International Record Review)

‘I don’t know how Hyperion keeps coming up with such fine young talent, but here we go again with another beautifully sung and superbly recorded effort from our English friends … excellent but seldom heard music, wonderful singing, fine engineering, and Hyperion's well-above-average documentation all add up to a thoroughly enjoyable experience’ (American Record Guide)

‘un bon argument pour découvrir ces œuvres’ (Répertoire)

With Sophie Daneman, Sarah Connolly, Mark Padmore and Stephan Loges. 2003

Hyperion CDA67388

‘There is much to recommend in this collection. First of all, the songs themselves, some deeper than others, are sweet and forthright, and shown to their best advantage by the equally sweet and forthright playing of Eugene Asti. Displaying a remarkable ease at the keyboard and a deep sense of these pieces, he seems to be the inspiring and unifying force behind the entire enterprise' (Fanfare, USA)

With Sarah Connolly. 2008

Chandos CHAN10492

‘Sarah Connolly reveals much of the composer’s fervent inwardness – something she and her accompanist, Eugene Asti, capture so well throughout.’ (BBC Music Magazine)

 ‘…there is much to enjoy here from both Connolly and the illuminating accompanist Asti.’ (The Times)

‘[the] Liederkreis is superbly done - an unnerving voyage through a soured Romantic landscape, awash with intimations of the horrors that lurk unsuspected in the corners of the psyche. Asti is her breathtakingly fine accompanist.’ (The Guardian) 

With Katherine Broderick, Hannah Morrison, Anna Grevelius, Finnur Bjarnarson and Stephan Loges. 2009

Hyperion CDA67739

'Loges - and Asti's committed piano-playing … provide consistent pleasure' (The Sunday Times)

'Stephan Loges satisfies most consistently with his understanding, beauty of tone and care for legato. Asti is the admirable pianist throughout and in two of the items is responsible for the completion of songs left unfinished' (Gramophone)

With Katherine Broderick, Hannah Morrison, Anna Grevelius, Finnur Bjarnarson, Stephan Loges and James Rutherford. 2010

Hyperion CDA67753

‘Hyperion’s series of Mendelssohn’s neglected vocal pieces continues to spread enchantment, thanks in part to young British talent. Katherine Broderick and Hannah Morrison, wonderfully clear and expressive sopranos, top the line-up gathered by Eugene Asti … Genius is frequent and Mendelssohn’s charm almost constant’ (The Independent)

'Eugene Asti plays with a refreshingly light touch and a lively sense of rhythm' (Gramophone)

With James Rutherford. 2012

BIS BIS-SACD-1610

‘Without doubt, the performance of American pianist Eugene Asti is a key feature of this recital. With faultless technique, deep poetic sensitivity and evident love for these pieces, he evokes the sunlit yesteryear landscapes of Central England, mourns the ever-present thoughts of men dying in vain, then brings heart to VW's Travels. I have to mention particularly his breath-taking rapt beauty in the preludes and postludes of the Butterworth songs, where he quietly relishes the composer's curdling harmonic progressions.’ (SACD.net)

‘…Equally admirable is the pianism of Eugene Asti who demonstrates       here, and throughout the programme, fine tone and a most sensitive touch.’ (MusicWebInternational.com)

With Sophie Karthäuser. 2014

Harmonia Mundi HMC 902179

Le choix de France Musique; Choc de Classica; Excepcional (Scherzo)

“Pianist Eugene Asti is a capable and expressive accompanist, handling the rushing whirl of Le présent with apparent ease, demonstrating subtle flexibility in the opening instrumental recitative of “C.” (the first of the Deux poèmes de Louis Aragon) , and projecting a delicate sadness in such pieces as Un ruine coquille vide.” (www.arkivmusic.com)

With James Rutherford. 2015

BIS BIS-2180 SACD

“Beyond its superlative musical qualities, this disc makes one of the most convincing cases yet recorded for regarding and performing Schwanengesang as a cycle, the seeds of complementary ideas blossoming in the warmth of Rutherford’s and Asti’s nurturing.” (www.voix-des-arts.com)

“Rutherford and Asti are both perceptive, probing artists of similar mind. Not surprisingly, their work in this project produces deeply satisfying accounts of [these] songs. The first few moments of Schwanengesang immediately catch our ear, with Asti's haunting velvety pianistic touch which makes a lovely impression in the gorgeous acoustic of Potton Hall, Suffolk.” (www.hraudio.net) 

With Sophie Karthäuser. 2016

Harmonia Mundi HMC 902245

“Karthäuser…is sensitive to Wolf’s sour-sweet, ever-shifting harmonies, and the raw nerves of the melodic line as it responds to the verse. And she is warmly supported by every nuance of accompaniment delineated in Eugene Asti’s piano playing … This anthology of uneasy springs, lovers’ twilights, innocence threatened, and experience mourned would make a good introduction for a newcomer to Hugo Wolf.” (BBC Music Magazine)

“It’s so lovely to hear the piano sound given the prominence that it deserves, and there’s a lovely bloom on the recording that gives it an almost live quality which I really appreciated. It’s a great selection of songs … it just works really well.” (CD Review)

“Karthäuser here proves herself a natural in Lieder...With her fresh, limpid soprano and sharp feeling for character and nuance, she gives unfailing delight in these settings... Asti is a model partner, commentator and animator.”  (Gramophone)

Songs by: Lalo, Ravel, Poulenc, Fauré, Séverac, Chabrier, Satie, Offenbach, Hahn, Bizet, Chausson, Chopin/Viardot and Rossini.  Solo piano pieces by Debussy and Ibert.)

With Sophie Karthäuser. 2018

Harmonia Mundi HMC 902260

“Sophie Karthäuser and Eugene Asti are both accomplished mimics and miss no opportunities among the larks (Lalo’s L’Alouette), cicadas (Chabrier’s Les Cigales), cats (Rossini’s famous cat duet, where Karthäuser is assisted by countertenor Dominique Visse), and other fauna. They also deftly change mood when animals are employed as mournful metaphors.” (BBC Music Magazine)

“This disc is a winner. It works on so many levels: as a thought-provoking survey of the remarkable extent to which French composers in particular have been inspired and stimulated by the animal world; as a carefully planned song recital; as an album into which you can dip easily for ten or fifteen minutes of unalloyed pleasure; and as an approachable anthology of French song which could make many new converts to the genre. I loved it. Karthäuser’s lyric soprano is intrinsically beautiful, pure and clear as a bell; but she also offers a tremendous range of vocal colour, a sophisticated sense of style, the ability to underline verbal or emotional detail without disturbing the melodic line, excellent diction, and apparently effortless control of her instrument. Moreover, she is ideally accompanied by Eugene Asti. He too has an utterly secure technique and is immensely skilful in imitating such natural phenomena as a cricket’s chirping (in Ravel’s Le Grillon) or the gentle lapping of water (in Poulenc’s La Carpe or Ravel’s Le Cygne). Above all, he seems alert to every nuance both of the songs and of Karthäuser’s interpretation of them. There is a real, vibrant sense of partnership – and one which is underlined by a judiciously balanced recording.” (www.musicweb-international.com)

On the piano, Eugene Asti is boldly descriptive. He creates twinkling ripples around the swan in Ravel’s Le cygne and surrounds Baudelaire’s owls with nocturnal mystery in Séverac’s Les hiboux. When required, such as in Chausson’s Le colibri, his playing has a gossamer transparency. The variety of the program is enriched when he goes solo in four playfully elegant extracts from Debussy’s "Children’s Corner" and Ibert’s Histoires, adding a drowsy elephant and a frisky white donkey to the menagerie. The recording strikes a good balance between an intimate closeness to Karthäuser’s voice and atmospheric space for the piano. The CD booklet contains the original poems with English translations and an informative essay by Denis Herlin. This recital is an excellent introduction to the genre. For those already familiar with these sometimes quirky, sometimes dreamy, always refined songs, Karthäuser and Asti will join the list of their worthy interpreters. (www.operatoday.com) 

Lawo LWC 1148

“Dem Pianisten Eugene Asti gelingt es auf dieser CD den Zuhörer gleich vom ersten Moment an zu fesseln. Mit seiner mitreißenden, mal dramatisch zupackenden Art zu spielen (Capriccio: Presto energico) oder auch mal mit schwebenden, graziöse Piani (Intermezzo: Adagio) setzt er auch perlende Triller ( aus den drei Interemezzi; Andante con moto) ein. Er findet für jede dieser 16 Kompositionen einen individuellen musikalischen Zugang. Hervorragend seine dynamischen Abstufungen im Piano, seine Eleganz, die er im musikalischen Ausdruck speziell bei den Pianopassagen an den Tag legt. Eine CD, die man gehört haben sollte.”

“The pianist Eugene Asti manages to captivate the Player from the first moment on this CD. With his rousing, sometimes dramatically gripping way of playing (Capriccio: Presto energico) or sometimes with floating, graceful piani (Intermezzo: Adagio) he also uses pearling trills (from the three Interemezzi, Andante con moto). He finds an individual musical approach to each of these 16 compositions. Outstanding are his dynamic nuances in the piano, his elegance, which he expresses in his musical expression, especially in the piano passages. A CD that should be heard.” (www.wordpress.com)

“Auf dieser CD passt einfach alles: Späte Klavierwerke von Johannes Brahms, aufgenommen in der wunderbar natürlichen Akustik der Sofienberg-Kirche in Oslo und gespielt auf einem hervorragend restaurierten und fabelhaft klingenden Steinway D aus dem Jahr 1893 von einem Pianisten, der um die letzten Dinge bei Brahms weiß.

Die Aufnahmen zeigen Eugene Asti als einen Brahms-Interpreten allererster Güte. Zwischen kraftvollen Forte und feinsten Pianissimo musiziert der Amerikaner höchst stimmungsvoll, mit viel Spannung, viel Reflektivem und viel purer Schönheit. Asti begrenzt das Melancholische und bringt eher das Zärtliche, aber auch das manchmal Zynische, Selbstspöttische der Musik zum Ausdruck, und das in einer so natürlichen Art und Weise, dass nichts überzogen oder recherchiert wirkt.

Bei so viel gestalterischem Raffinement und so viel charakteristischem Musizieren kann man nur von einer großartigen Brahms-CD sprechen.”

“Everything fits on this CD: Late Piano Works by Johannes Brahms, recorded in the wonderfully natural acoustics of the Sofienberg Church in Oslo and played on a beautifully restored and fabulous-sounding Steinway D from 1893 by a pianist who understands the last things Brahms composed.

The recordings show Eugene Asti as a Brahms interpreter of the very highest quality. Between powerful forte and the finest pianissimo, the American performs with a great sense of mood, suspense, sense of reflection and pure beauty. Asti limits the melancholy and expresses the tenderness, but also the sometimes cynical, self-mocking nature of music, in such a natural way that nothing seems exaggerated or studied.With so much creative refinement and so much characteristic music making, one can only speak of a great Brahms CD.” Eugene Asti proves an excellent Brahms performer. His playing on a very well-restored Steinway from 1893 is refined and atmospheric in a well-laid-out sound recording (www.pizzicato.lu)

“Asti is een begenadigd pianist die Brahms’ intimiteit perfect weet te peilen en die de diepgang ervan met wondermooie fraseringen en een beheerste doch overgevoelige aanslag, omtovert in een prachtige pianoklank. Wondermooi. Warm aanbevolen.”

“Asti is a gifted pianist who perfectly knows Brahms' intimacy and transforms the depth of it with wonderful phrasing and a controlled yet highly sensitive attack into a beautiful piano sound. Wonderful. Highly recommended.” (www.stretto.be) 

With Sophie Karthäuser, Stéphane Degout and Alain Planès. 2018

Harmonia Mundi 2CD HMM 902306.07

Shortlisted for a Gramophone Award

“Asti is no less wonderful [than Planès], a winning light touch to his guitar-strumming in Mandoline, while his phrasing in La flûte de Pan is especially limpid.” (Mark Pullinger, Gramophone)

“Both pairs of performers on these discs emerge as Debussyans to their very core. It is a rare delight to encounter almost half of the French master’s songs in performances as carefully conceived as they are committed, especially since his achievement in the field of the Mélodie is the area of his canon which is arguably least known to players. There are abundant treasures to be enjoyed here. The recording is warm and natural and continues the fine sonic traditions of this label. This beautifully produced set is a treat indeed and marks another splendid contribution from Harmonia Mundi to the Debussy centenary.” (www.musicweb-international.com)