Kobacker Hall, November 1981

14 November 1981

Kobacker Hall, Bowling Green State University, Ohio

Mendelssohn, Schumann Fantasy, Schubert/Liszt Lieder, Mephisto waltz (as 11 Nov. 1981)

Boris Nelson, in The Toledo Blade 16.11.81:

'Mr Bolet's brilliant playing has been honed to the very edge. His immense, virtuosity, experience, and sheer intelligence all concentrate on the music's lyricism. And being a romantic at heart, he envelops it with a luminous sound that whispers or propels into a sunburst of passion that still remains crystal clear. Yes, he personalises what he plays, and why not?

[Of the Schubert Liszt songs:] 'These transcriptions can sound, well, cheap in the hands of a lesser musical mind than Mr Bolet, who gave them an iridescence that was astonishing. The sheer liquidity and power of the development – never mind, the staggering technical demands – were realised superbly, as was indeed the entire program. Mr Bolet is about as extraordinary a representative of romantic pianism, as can be found alive today.

'His playing was imbued with elegance, an effervescence, and an Innerlichkeit (clumsily translated: an inwardness) which made for bedazzling piano playing.'