Olivier Pons - Press

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Paganini, Concerto No. 1

"An excellent concert, there are only good things to say about the soloist Olivier Pons. He played this demanding concerto with great mastery, passion, and an intimate understanding of the Master's style. I could not help but admire his bowing technique, his rhythmic precision and the beauty of special effects such as double harmonics. Pons has a very good sounding instrument, offering a clear and rich sound. In the first movement, Pons played the long, dizzying cadenza, posing all sorts of challenges; the execution was almost perfect..."
Finland: Länsi-Väylä, Markus Lång

"Frenchman Olivier Pons proved equal to the task. The composer's ingenious visions developed, in their forms and themes, into a beautiful unity in the interaction between the soloist and the orchestra. Pons made his violin sound immaculately charming, his flamboyant virtuosity shone through the huge cadenza that ends the first movement."
Finland: Västra Nyland, Anders Riska

"As soloist they had a top violinist: Olivier Pons from France. He played Paganini's most difficult concerto magnificently, a flawless performance, something never seen before in Finland. Perhaps Heimo Haito in his best days could make Paganini sound comparable. Having worked on the violin myself in my youth, I can only marvel at the ease with which the young Frenchman played the torrents of notes, spiccato and harmonics. All this with ideal timing and a captivating spirituality.
* Finnish violinist who began a very brilliant career before the Second World War
Kirkkonummen Sanomat: "HIRVI"


Bach-Paganini-Ysaye

"...Olivier PONS, international violinist, played the Partita in D min by J-S Bach. The tasteful phrasing was built of long lines, with the greatest precision, in the best respect of the spirit of the time. Perfect tempi, comfortable in intimate communication with the instrument, a Jean-Baptiste Vuillaume of 1827. Pons dares to keep the third movement "Sarabande" in a peaceful calm and a very soft pianissimo, without however losing the direction and expression of a dance. In a word: perfect.
... Pons' energy and intensity in Ysaÿe's third Sonata gives an extreme dramatic tension in the beautiful double string passages..."
Aland, Sweden, April 2005


Prokofiev

"...in the third (slow) movement, Pons made it clear that he has studied with Russian masters through his thorough interpretation. He succeeded incredibly in bringing the music of the Russian soul to life.
Syd-Österbotten (Finland)


Violin-piano recital

"Olivier Pons has established himself as one of the most brilliant violinists of his generation. Whether as a soloist or in chamber music, his prodigious virtuosity is only one facet of a talent that is first and foremost that of a musician of impeccable taste and style.
Ouest-France

"...the emotion was palpable throughout the evening. A few tears among the audience, and a thunderous applause greeted this magical performance.
Ouest-France


Album " Poème " 2021

"...This is a real moment of escape, tenderness and intensity, as evidenced by the heart-rending Prelude and Allegro in the style of Gaetano Pugnani by Kreisler. (...) Serge Prokofiev's famous Sonata No. 2 in D major is here restored to its former glory. To admire the richness of the colour palette, the quality of the dense and subtle sound fabric, the naturalness of the phrasing. The two protagonists share the same vision of the score, which they deliver here with great musical acuity and beautiful eloquence.
Utmisol

"Ernest Chausson's radiantly atmospheric Poème, originally for violin and orchestra, completes the set with the most touching sentimentality, and it is only Prokofiev's Second Sonata that stands out from the general aesthetic.
With this wonderfully melodious and fresh piece, a certain indulgence is required, but when it is played as it is here, with such mastery of the musical discourse, and such finesse of sound. Gräsbeck and Pons manage to capture the specific character of each piece with ideal acuity, and the Bösendorfer in the Palace of Nobility sounds delicious."
Finland, Hufvudstadsbladet: Matts Liljeroos

"Above all, violinist Olivier Pons throws himself into these genre pieces with complete vehemence and enthusiasm. His playing is characterised by a powerful bow pressure and a broad sound, which may have come from his upbringing as the pedagogical grandson of David Oïstrakh. His approach is supported by a great technical mastery.
Luxembourg, Pizzicato

"It's a record that seems to be awfully banal, even a bit old-fashioned. And yet, from the very first seconds, the magic happens. Fritz Kreisler's 'Prelude and Allegro' captivates you instantly. The understanding and complicity between Olivier Pons and Folke Gräsbeck is obvious. (...) Prokofiev's 'Sonata number 2' is of rare elegance. I was impressed by Olivier Pons' phrasing and musicality. It is as if he managed to find a way to reconcile the different facets of Prokofiev's writing. There is a kind of balance between the lyricism and the rougher sides of this sonata which are presented here in a kind of natural and poetic continuity.
France, Audiophile, "Grand frisson 2021"

"Olivier Pons, who studied in Russia and worked for a long time in Finland, is a French violinist: Kreisler's Prelude and Allegro 'à la Pugnani' reveals that he is also a full-blooded virtuoso, which would have pleased Sibelius, who in these late pieces is carried away by the music of his youth and his dreams of becoming a violinist. The sovereign mastery of the Russian tradition is apparent in Tchaikovsky's Melancholic Serenade and is even more apparent in Prokofiev's First Violin Sonata, where the pianist Folke Gräsbeck also shows his excellence.
The most interesting part of this wide and varied repertoire is the previously unrecorded pieces by Oskar Merikanto. It is difficult to understand how a melodic gem like the Berceuse op.92 No.8 could remain hidden until now. The Air and the Variations on a Folk Theme are also beautiful discoveries. After Merikanto, listening to Prokofiev's sonata - originally for flute and piano - reminds us that this Russian composer was also a brilliant melodist, even if the idiom touches on modernism. The disc closes with Frenchman Ernest Chausson's darkly pathosed Poème, which Pons unfolds fearlessly and with an impetuous grip."
Finland, Rondo Classic