Press
A ‘Great’ Evening with the Hangzhou Philharmonic Orchestra and Violinist Augustin Dumay
Violinist Augustin Dumay provided real French flare and the HPO responded in kind in three late nineteenth-century works for violin and orchestra. Dumay was a child prodigy, whose talents were spotted and nurtured by Nathan Milstein, one of the great violinists of the twentieth century. His international career was launched by no less than the legendary conductor Herbert van Karajan. Ravel’s Tzigane opens with an extended solo for violin, which was the first opportunity to luxuriate in Dumay’s warm, burnished sound. The fantastic duet for solo violin and piccolo that is one of Tzigane’s most exciting passages was expertly dispatched. After Ravel’s gypsy-inspired music came Chausson’s elusive, emotive Poème. With each repetition of its evocative melody, Dumay displayed new facets of color and emotion in his playing. Together, Dumay and the HPO transported us into that ‘gentle dreaminess’, as Debussy described the work’s closing measures, which is a lovely place to be.
If most of the orchestra appeared to be young, many in the audience were actually children. Dumay could not have hoped for a more attentive audience than those young listeners, but even so they sat up straight and perked up their ears when he started to play the Méditation from Thaïs. Perhaps they know it from the soundtrack of the film Titanic, or maybe just instinctively responded to its intoxicating melody, but they liked what they heard. Throughout, Dumay was charm personified, and gracious in acknowledging the HPO’s excellent work; gallantly handing his bouquet of flowers to harpist Yinuo Yang, who had partnered with him so beautifully in the Ravel and Massenet.
Rick Perdian, Seen and Heard International, Jan. 2017
BARTÓK Violin Concerto no.2
Augustin Dumay violin, Orchestre symphonique de Montréal, Kent Nagano, conductor
A monumental Montreal performance of Bartók’s Second Violin Concerto. Dumay’s mastery of a piece he obviously loves is evident throughout.
The Strad, Carlos María Solare, June 2016
Die Schönheit des Tons geht mit der Radikalität des Werks eine faszinierende Synthese ein.
News Zeitschrift, Juni 2016
Somptueux : voilà le premier adjectif qui vient à l’esprit à l’écoute du dernier album d’Augustin Dumay. Ce concerto, l’un des grands classiques du XXe siècle, le violoniste français le marque de son empreinte: une étreignante nostalgie étayée par une palette de couleurs remarquablement restituée par la prise de son.
Classica, Jérémie Bigorie, juin 2016
I enjoyed [the Second Violin Concerto] enormously, principally because it harks back to the wholesomely romantic approaches of Stern with Bernstein and Menuhin with Dorati. […] Summing up, a worthy and often interesting supplement to my current top recommendations: Fischer or Kocsis in the Concerto for Orchestra and Kelemen with Kocsis in the Second Violin Concerto. I’ll certainly want to hang on to it.
Gramophone, Rob Cowan, June 2016
… une présence, une énergie, une autorité intacte dans la prise d’archet, l’articulation, les contrastes. Et un rubato subtil dans les enchaînements, une éloquence lyrique vibrante dans les passages élégiaques. […] Tout concourt à l’élaboration d’une interprétation à la fois spontanée et intense, qui épouse naturellement le rhapsodisme de ce chef-d’œuvre complexe.
Diapason, Rémi Louis, jui. 2016
Concert
Ottawa_contour… this was a masterful performance by two great artists at the summit of their technical and expressive powers. Their playing agreed in refinement and insight, and each was elevated by the magnificent generosity of the other […] a memorable recital.
Ottawa Citizen, Natasha Gauthier, July 2015
Ottawa Chamberfest, Recital with Jean-Claude Vanden Eynden
FRANCK & STRAUSS Violin Sonatas
Augustin Dumay violin, Louis Lortie piano
Compelling playing form one of today’s great violinists … this outstanding disc is a timely reminder of one of the modern violin greats.
The Strad, Julian Haylock, May 2013
Dumay’s sound is just to die for quite frankly. […] Just gorgeous […] an impressive partnership.
BBC 3 radio, CD Review, Andrew McGregor & Harriet Smith, Mar. 2013
… everything Lortie and Dumay do sounds exactly right. It is as if they are thinking and breathing in exact unison. […] The album is such a treat from beginning to end.
Musical Toronto, John Terauds, Feb. 2013
Concert
… cette édition anniversaire fut marquée par un moment de grâce absolu, comme on se dit que cela n’existe plus au concert : la soirée que donna l’Orchestre Royal de Chambre de Wallonie dirigé par Augustin Dumay avec Maria Joao Pires en soliste. Programme Mozart avec le Concerto pour violon n°5 en ouverture – Dumay sublime de liberté et de poésie, l’orchestre précis et enthousiaste…
La lettre du Musicien, Olivier Duchesne, sep. 2010
Festival de la Roque-d’Anthéron / Augustin Dumay violon & direction,
Maria Joao Pires piano, Orchestre Royal de Chambre de Wallonie
Dumay is among the most elegant of stylists, and [in Franck’s sonata] his performance mined a seam of sensuousness in the work that we don’t always hear. The end of the second movement was a technical tour de force for both of them [Lortie and Dumay].
The Guardian, Tim Ashley, May 2010
London, Queen Elizabeth Hall / Franck, Chausson, Ravel
Augustin Dumay violin, Louis Lortie piano, Quatuor Ebène
Augustin Dumay violin & conductor, Camerata Academica Salzburg
These fresh and invigorating performances of Mozart’s three finest concertos for the violin are amongst the best on disc since the classic Arthur Grumiaux-Colin Davis set of 1960s.
The Sunday Times, Hugh Canning
Dumay’s performances are easily as fine as Grumiaux’s in their eloquence, vivacity and exquisite purity of tone.
BBC Music Magazine, Catherine Nelson
Dumay is essentially a dreamer, a fantasist extraordinaire. […] without exaggeration one of the finest Mozart violin concerto discs ever made.
Classic CD, Julian Haylock
High-fibre, robustly articulated orchestral playing acts as a frame and foil for the imaginative richesse of Dumay’s own free and airy spirit. […] Dumay’s choice of tempos makes each slow movement appear to breathe the air of another planet.
Gramophone (Editor’s Choice), James Jolly
Dans le plein épanouissement de son art, la cinquantaine venue, Augustin Dumay nous livre ici un admirable disque dont il assume en complet maître d’œuvre (à la fois soliste et chef) toute l’émouvante beauté. […] Dieu que c’est beau ! On a quitté la terre ! […] Pour Augustin Dumay […] et la Camerata, c’est l’épanouissement total, le don du sang, la chaleur de la vie. Superbe !
Répertoire, Jean Hamon
BRAHMS Complete Chamber Music
Augustin Dumay violin, Maria João Pires Piano, Jian Wang cello, various artists
Violin Sonatas 1, 2 & 3; Piano Trios 1 & 2
Musique de chambre de Brahms : la quintessence
… les interprètes du coffret […] nous proposent tous des exécutions de grande classe. […] Les Sonates pour violon et piano nous sont offertes par Augustin Dumay et Maria João Pires, nettement supérieurs au duo Christian Ferras-Pierre Barbizet.
ResMusica, Michel Tibbaut, jan. 2013
BRAHMS Violin Sonatas
Augustin Dumay violin, Maria João Pires piano
I had not realized that there are already 19 versions of the three Brahms violin sonatas currently available. Many of these, of course, are extremely good. Nevertheless, Dumay and Pires easily deserve to be considered amongst the best, for their playing is consistently mature, stylistically homogeneous and, above all, refined. […] overall this is a release of considerable distinction.
Gramophone, J.M-C
Concert
New Jersey Symphony Orchestra: impressive in Mozart show
Mozart performances can sometimes tend to be merely pleasant, but Dumay galvanized the orchestra as he encouraged brisk tempos and sharp articulations that brought out the vibrancy within the composer’s works […] As a soloist, Dumay’s concentrated, brilliant sound and stage animal demeanor […] Dumay led the Symphony No.29 (and) drew plenty of character – as he did throughout the program.
The Star-Ledger, Ronni Reich, Nov. 2012
New Jersey Symphony Orchestra / Augustin Dumay violin & conductor
… the poetry that Dumay brought to the beautiful encore [the Adagietto from Bizet’s L’Arlesienne Suite No.1] was indescribable. I think there weren’t too many dry eyes in the house, including on stage. Dumay represents a very high level of artistry, and to hear that in both his playing and his conducting was a high point of the season for me.
Musician insight, Jonathan Spitz, Principal Cello of NJSO, Nov. 2012
New Jersey Symphony Orchestra / Augustin Dumay violin & conductor
Since his appointment as a music director at Kansai Philharmonic Orchestra, the orchestral sound has been improved dramatically.
Nikkei Newspaper, Uran Sasaki, Sep. 2011
BEETHOVEN Complete Violin Sonatas
Augustin Dumay violin, Maria João Pires piano
For the past half century, Deutsche Grammophon has released roughly one cycle of Beethoven’s violin sonatas per decade. […] all are markedly surpassed by the extraordinary standard set by violinist Augustin Dumay and pianist Maria Joao Pires in this new set. […] the reference edition of Beethoven’s violin sonatas for years to come.
Stereophile (New York), Jed Distler
Dumay is an absolute Master of using changes in tone color as an expressive device […][He] plays some of the most gorgeous violin diminuendos you will ever hear. […] Grab it while it’s still in print.
Fanfare (Tenafly, NJ), Richard A. Kaplan
This is really splendid! […] this new set of Beethoven’s complete works belongs among the very best available. […] In fact, this is certainly one of the better-equalized duos to record these works, superior in this particular respect to Argerich/Kremer, Oistrakh/Oborin, or even Perlman/Ashkenazy. […] Make no mistake, this is chamber music playing of the first order, and a major contribution to the Beethoven discography – a set to be savored and enjoyed many times over.
ClassicsToday.com, David Hurwitz
This is the stuff that dreams are made of. Augustin Dumay and [Maria João Pires] offer powerful and refreshingly direct interpretation. What makes the recording all the more captivating is their fearlessness and commitment to the service of the music
The Strad, Heather Kurzbauer
Concert
Augustin Dumay est devenu au fil du temps une référence incontournable dans l’interprétation mozartienne, au concert comme au disque.
Crescendo, Noel Godts
…on retiendra la longueur étonnante et l’infinie délicatesse de l’archet d’Augustin Dumay ainsi que son charisme et sa simplicité. Mozart a là l’un de ses grands interprètes.
Le Monde de la Musique, Georges Gad
Festival de Musique de Pékin, Cité interdite
Dumay, grâce à sa virtuosité toujours sublime, à son sens aigu de la tension dramatique, a offert au public une parcelle de magie. C’est sûr qu’à ce moment là, Mozart fut ressuscité.
La Libre Belgique, Marlène Britta
Orchestre Philharmonique de Liège / Augustin Dumay violon & direction
SAINT-SAËNS La Muse et le Poète, Cello Concerto no.1, Symphony no.1
Augustin Dumay conductor & violin, Pavel Gomziakov cello, Kansai Philharmonic Orchestra
This fascinating disc would represent a superb introduction to the music of Camille Saint-Saëns. […] Highly recommended. I’m on a voyage of discovery with this stuff.
Herald Scotland, Michael Tumelty, Jun. 2012
…L’interprétation de la Symphonie est intéressante et la direction d’Augustin Dumay l’emporte sur celle de ses confrères. Il semble en effet avoir intégré tout ce que l’on sait aujourd’hui sur l’interprétation des musiques symphoniques du XIXème siècle et nous donne une version allégée aux timbres savoureux.
Classica, Jacques Bonnaure, juillet-août 2012
… I’ve never heard the orchestral part sound as pellucid and detailed as it does under Dumay’s direction. For the concerto alone, I give this a five-star recommendation, but it comes with an equally illuminating performance of Saint-Saëns’s First Symphony, which may make you reassess your thoughts about this delightful early work.
Fanfare Magazine, Jerry Dubins, Oct. 2012
Concert
Renowned French violinist Augustin Dumay is playing a world famous piece of Chinese music. […] His interpretation is one of the highlights of the ongoing Beijing Music Festival.
China Daily, Chan Jie
Beijing Music Festival, Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto
Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra, Long Yu conductor
The focal point of the London Symphony Orchestra’s Russian programme at the Barbican on Sunday night was undoubtedly the performance by Augustin Dumay of Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto […] Mr Dumay is a violinist of remarkable individuality […] there was never a moment’s doubt that his view of the work was excitingly musical, stimulatingly original, a marvelously fresh but idiomatic interpretation […] all with a strength of personality that made it so powerfully communicative and memorable.
The Daily Telegraph, Geoffrey Norris
London / Tchaikovsky’s Concerto
London Symphony Orchestra, Gerard Schwartz conductor
MOZART Concerto no.2, Sinfonia Concertante, Rondo, Adagio
Augustin Dumay violin & conductor, Veronika Hagen viola, Camerata Academica Salzburg
[Dumay] joue et dirige du bout de l’archet son intégrale de l’œuvre concertante pour violon dont on ne manquera pas de se souvenir ! Son jeu raffiné, princier, éloquent et gracieux touche par une simplicité qui balaie les sempiternelles volontés ostentatoires de ce type de répertoire.
ramifications.be
… his warmth and variety of expression will soon win you over. Listen to his seductive account of the K261 Adagio and you’ll want to buy the CD!
Gramophone, Duncan Druce
Concert
… The soloist was an important artist who doesn’t seem to have played in Boston before, the French violinist Augustin Dumay. His recordings led us to expect the supremely elegant virtuosity he delivered.
The Boston Globe, Richard Dyer
Boston / Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto
Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra, Long Yu conductor
Augustin Dumay, een leerling van de legendarische Grumiaux, behoort ook tot de allergrootsten. Hij speelt […] van binnenuit met een enorm muzikaal denkraam, een schitternde toonvorming en een uitstraling, die tot ademloos luisteren dwingt. […] Wat een meesterlijk vioolspel, ver verheven boven de materie, subliem van toon, zuiverheid en expressie. […] Briljant!
Eindhoven Dayblad, Cornelie Hoendervanger
Eindhoven / Concert Mozart
Augustin Dumay violin & conductor, Maria Joao Pires piano, Orchestre Royal de Chambre de Wallonie
Of particular pleasure was the rapport between violinist and pianist […] This was definitely a sonata for violin and piano, Dumay and Lortie a productive partnership. […] the spirit of Franck’s music (and its rigour) was magnetically presented, the finale enjoying a particularly relaxed tempo to increase its mellow songfulness.
classicalsource.com, Colin Anderson, May 2010
London, Queen Elizabeth Hall / Franck, Chausson, Ravel
Augustin Dumay violin, Louis Lortie piano, Quatuor Ebène
Planmässig im Programm : Augustin Dumays impulsive Interpretation des Violinkonzerts in G-Dur. Der Franzose hat eine innige Beziehung zu Mozart. Beeindruckend, wie er im Adagio seine kantablen Botschaften in Jenseits schickte und im feurigen Rondo mit seinem tanzlüstigen Temperamentausbrüchen provozierte.
Berliner Morgenpost, Martina Helmig
Konzerthaus Berlin / Mozart Violinkonzert Nr.3
Berliner Symphoniker, Eliahu Inbal conductor