With strength and musical sense

Westfälische Rundschau, 23 Maggio 2001
“Mit Klangsinn und Kraft”
Filippo Gamba al Festival ‘Next Generation’

Since he won the prestigious Géza Anda competition in July 2000, the 32 year-old Italian pianist’s career has taken off rapidly.
Last year he played at the Ruhr Piano Festival and now, at the “Next Generation” Festival in the Harenberg City Center, he has enthralled his audience with a fine interpretation of Romantic works.

He is a captivating poet of sound who endeavours to penetrate the musical expression in every detail. Staying well clear of any routine, he wholeheartedly maintained spontaneity while revealing naturalness and employing his virtuosity in a discreet and natural manner.
After Schumann’s pensive Arabeske op. 18, he played the Davidsbündlertänze op.6 by the same composer, admirably managing to connect these small, quite different pieces in a musical unity rich in tension. He painted the emotions of the two figures of fantasy, the impetuous Florestan and the delicate Eusebius, with incredible musical sense and narrative gesture, though also with resolute strength, using a complete palette of the most delicate pastel colours. Adherences to playing indications became small examples of a suggestive preciousness.

Sustained by ardent youth and musical emphasis, the Brahms Sonata op.5 then also demanded contrasts. Here, too, he penetrated the rich substance of the work with passion and accomplished musical sense, achieving a spirited intensity in the last bars, dramatically displayed by the concentration of the chords.
Filippo Gamba played a newly-developed Bechstein, supplied by the Van Bremen piano maker. The pianist fully exploited its big, broad sound with exquisite magic, impressing both himself and the audience.