Clare Hammond’s latest album, British Piano Concertos, is out now on BIS Records (listen here). This disc showcases three major works for piano and orchestra by Michael Tippett, Benjamin Britten and William Walton, performed with the BBC Symphony Orchestra, conducted by George Vass.
The album has received critical acclaim:
The Times **** - “The unifying factor is the crisp artistry of Clare Hammond, whether she’s navigating the florid tendrils creeping over Tippett’s Concerto for Piano and Orchestra or pecking out the suggestive phrases that propel Britten’s Diversions using only the fingers of her left hand... Hammond and orchestra (the BBC Symphony Orchestra, conducted by George Vass) secure bigger rewards in the chiselled exchanges of the Britten, written for the one-armed pianist Paul Wittgenstein. Tippett’s hothouse effusions suit them too, even if the orchestra at times needs just a little more virility to match Hammond’s athletic flair.” (full review)
Gramophone - “It's been an age (55 years to be precise) since the last still underrated Sinfonia concertante in its 1943 revision (…), so a hearty welcome to Clare Hammond’s scrupulously prepared alliance with George Vass and the BBC So […] all give their formidable best, and to their number must now be added Clare Hammond, who locates a melting poetry and depth of expression in Variation 5 (‘Chant’), 6 (‘Nocturne’) and 10 (‘Adagio’), while not missing out on the virtuosic fireworks of those two linked toccatas that form Var 9 as well as the ‘Tarantella’ finale. A comparably selfless dedication, nourishing intellect and unfailingly questing spirit inform the illuminating performance of Tippet’s soaringly lyrical and luminously textured Piano Concerto (1953-55), written in the wake of his first opera, The Midsummer Marriage. Intensely concentrated and memorably articulate, Hammond is comprehensively equipped to tackle this music’s formidable technical challenges, her exquisitely variegated tonal palette, deft touch and quiet authority truly things of wonder.”
BBC Radio 3 Record Review - “it’s so persuasive…it’s such a musical dialogue, both in terms of how Walton has written this later version of the piece, but also the way Hammond plays it. She’s so utterly at ease in and out of the spotlight with moments of virtuosic really flashy finger work…it’s a really remarkable recording, again that really apparent ease…really ethereal glistening…some thunderous piano playing…it’s a great recording”(listen here)
Thoroughly Good - "Her sound carries a distinctive crispness — even in the most lyrical passages — that sets her apart from many amongst her generation. There’s a reassuring fastidiousness in the placing of every note. The second-movement solo line in Walton’s Sinfonia Concertante, delicately shadowed by the flutes, is a striking example: poised, lucid, and unshowy. Yet the clarity comes with a self-assured warmth. The movement’s swift harmonic shifts and intricately woven textures grow from careful decision-making — the kind of detail in music-making that acts as a powerful trigger for the imaginative listener." (full review)
The Critic - "Hammond delivers Benjamin Britten’s 1940 Diversions for piano (left hand) and orchestra, leaving us in no doubt from the opening statement that this composer in his 20s knows exactly where he is going, what he has to say and how he means to express it. Written for the one-armed Paul Wittgenstein, it flopped on first performance and was long neglected. My reaction on hearing it again after several years is that you would not change one single note, so secure is Britten’s confidence in his gift. Beside him, others fade to sepia." - Norman Lebrecht (full review).
MusicWeb - “This enterprising and well-filled programme of works for piano and orchestra is self-recommending for its contents almost as much as it is for the excellence of its soloist. You can always have confidence in Clare Hammond as a performer of whatever she turns her hands to, and so I was never going to turn down an offer to hear this release.[...] This is an excellent performance of another rarely heard work, full of contrasts as you might expect in a theme and eleven variations,[…] this is a must-have programme for seekers of mostly neglected and rarely performed mid-20th century British repertoire.” (full review)
You can hear Clare talk about the album in this trailer and see her play the Badinerie from Britten's Diversions here.
The recording is also available to listen to on all major streaming platforms by clicking here and you can purchase the disc here..
