NEUES DEUTSCHLAND June 20, 1996
BSO Concert for Clara Schumann
Belated Eulogy
Her reputation resting firm since her performances with the Berlin Philharmonic (under Sir Colin Davis, among others), the young pianist Babette Hierhoizer evinced in Berlin a courageous and fresh approach to this virtuosic and expressive music, and thereby chalked up yet another success. Her association with Clara Schumann is a close one - she recorded the soundtrack for the film "Spring Symphony" and at the same time stood in for Nastassja Kinski in the role of Clara Wieck.
Translation: Janet & Michael Berridge
DER TAGESSPIEGEL – BERLIN, May 12, 1996
The Poetry of Spring
Babette Hierholzer, Yutaka Sado and the BSO commemorate Clara Schumann
When Clara Schumann died in Frankfurt am Main on May 20, 1896, one hundred years ago, she was mourned not only as the widow of Robert Schumann but as the most important female pianist of the nineteenth century as well. It was forgotten that her father had originally forseen a dual role for her, as both composer and pianist. When Robert Schumann was forced to give up his career as pianist she permitted her creative ambitions to recede into the background.
The A minor piano concerto by the 14-year-old Clara Wieck was written long before she made this critical decision. Dedicated to Louis Spohr, this youthful work cannot fairly be measured against the mature compositions of Clara Wieck's contemporaries. Despite shortcomings to its form, proportions and the development of its thematic motifs, the work is evidence of an astounding creative gift which never came to its full flowering. Babette Hierholzer, who stood in for Nastassja Kinski the role of Clara Wieck in the Schumann film "Spring Symphony", tended in her performance to emphasize the virtuosic elan of the concerto. Her brilliant octave playing highlighted thematic fragments in figural sections, while her energetic tempo constantly challenged the accompanying orchestra. In the slow movement she surprisingly allowed the solo cello to carry the main melody, before the third movement - completed with Robert Schumann's assistance - brought out the concertance dimensions of the work.
Translation: Janet & Michael Berridge
FERVENT PIANISTIC MIRACLE
Babette Hierholzer with the Philharmonic Orchestra Würzburg
.....Extraordinary: Where will you find a pianist who reawakens two piano works by the composer Clara Schumann with such intense vitality as does the pianist Babette Hierholzer? Apparently she is a specialist in this music. With youthful verve and superior virtuosity she played the F Minor Concerto movement, only recently discovered, and revealed all its romantic capacity with bravura. In the A Minor Piano Concerto, an extremely demanding work, which is even richer in themes and fantasy, she deeply impressed her audience, especially in the Romance with her inspired interpretation.
FEMALE TROIKA
Composer, conductor, pianist in a concert with the Philharmonic Orchestra...
In the center of interest: Piano works by Clara Schumann. The Concerto Movement in F Minor and the Piano Concerto in A Minor were brought to life by the pianist Babette Hierholzer. She displayed extraordinary virtuosity and great musical intuition in the dialogue with orchestra and solo cellist, as well as, by the brilliance of her interpretation. There was intense applause.
HIERHOLZER GIVES BRAVURA PERFOMANCE OF CONCERTO
By LANE CROCKETT, The Times
Doubtless Shreveport Symphony concertgoer's will remember German pianist Babette Hierholzer. Her performance of Clara Wieck-Schumann's Piano Concerto Saturday night will easily rank as one of the season's highlights.
The audience was on its feet when she hit the last note in the Shreveport Civic Theatre. They should have been. Hierholzer not only plays with take-charge authority but she produces a wonderful sound. Wieck-Schumann's concerto probably is not familiar to most. It's a wonderful piece that alternates between lyrical beauty and keyboard fireworks. Near the middle is a lovely piano-cello duet that was exquisitely played by cellist Krishna Vaska-Haas and Hierholzer, who actually takes the secondary part. With great flourish, the concerto moves to a dramatic finale. The current concert-pair, which concludes with an afternoon performance today, opens with Felix Mendelssohn's light-hearted, almost hysterically happy, Symphiony No. 4 (Italian). There is a great deal of string work throughout, and Maestro Dennis Simons and his string sections never sounded better or tighter. A couple of years ago, there probably would not have been this sound. Listeners especially will like the furious fourth movement, which 'pushes the musicians at a relentless pace. Had it not been for Hierholzer's bravura performance, the Mendelssohn most likely would have been the program's highlight. It certainly set the tone for all that as to follow.
Treat yourself this afternoon and catch this program. You will be glad you heard Hierholzer.