"Throughout one hour of music that straddles the salon with the “seriously” traditional, the extraordinary Matei Varga is welcomed back, playing idiomatically as to the manner born with a cool brain and a warm heart, letting the music of Lecuona and his predecessors resonate eloquently in a treasurable collection of music for the piano, assembled after months of isolation imposed on the artist and on all of us by unfortunate circumstances."
Rafael de Acha ALL ABOUT THE ARTS
“Varga's poignant homage to composers who died far too young includes delightful world premieres by Romanian pianist Dinu Lipatti." BBC Music
Conceived and recorded over the past 2.5 years by Sono Luminus, Imagine Christmas is the perfect album for your holiday celebrations, evoking a very deep sense of nostalgia while remaining wonderfully modern.
"One of coolest and most beautiful Christmas albums you'll hear this year!"
First Day represents many firsts, beginnings and youthful sentiments. The title is taken from the phrase "paths of the first day" from the final track on the album, "Les chemins de l'amour" by Francis Poulenc.
"Metcalf and Varga are old friends and work together smoothly and warmly" - American Record Guide
Enescu is one of twentieth century's most underrated composers, and his piano music in particular deserves to be heard a lot more often.
"a pianist fully on top of the rather punishing and never showy virtuosity required by Enescu's music" - AllMusic.com
The two cello and piano sonatas by Johannes Brahms can be considered examples of the stylistic transformation that shaped his career as a composer.
"this is more than a musical partnership; it's two lives that depend on each other, and it's an absolutely thrilling, breathtaking marvel to behold" - Fanfare
Making a transcription for piano of Tchaikovsky's iconic Swan Lake consisted of breaking it apart, inspecting the pieces, and from them, creating something new.
"Varga's playing is superb, and overall it's a remarkable achievement" - Robert Sherman, WQXR
