Violinist Emily Sun’s debut album, ‘Nocturnes‘ (ABC Classics) featuring pianist Andrea Lam, has been nominated for a 2021 ARIA Award for ‘Best Classical Album’ – see all the nominations here.
Reviews for Nocturnes – French music for violin and piano (ABC Classics), featuring acclaimed pianist Andrea Lam:
The Australian (Review, 14-15 August, 2021):
“Today, London-based Emily Sun is on the verge of international superstardom. And what a captivating album is her debut recording, Nocturnes…
Sun and her formidable [pianist] Andrea Lam shine.. Sun has a silvery tone, refined and somewhat understated.. Lam, meanwhile, communicates an assuredness born of reflection on the ethos of the works themselves. Together, they accompany us through the sonic gardens of Monet. This listener can hardly wait for their second release together…” [5 stars]
Sydney Morning Herald (Spectrum, Pick of the Week, July 2021):
“A gorgeous debut album of late Romantic French music… This is a winner on every count: the music itself, the individual playing, the expressive intensity, and the collaboration between the pair, who seem to breathe as one. Sun brings lush sound, firm attack and purity of tone to the deeply romantic and poetic Franck violin sonata. The pair have formidable rivals in the recordings of this sonata, but I will return often to this account… The other main piece is the Faure sonata, a gentler and more intimate work whose sophistication is often understated. Here the various complexities unfold naturally, idiomatically and beautifully.” [4.5 stars]
Limelight Magazine (September, 2021):
“extraordinary… [Sun] has a special affinity for the intimacy of chamber music, and a debut album seemed long overdue. Together with Australian pianist Andrea Lam, she has finally delivered the goods…. Sun shines in the final movement of the Franck as its recurring canon hits turbulence thought left behind in the previous fantasia before emerging in triumph. But she’s not gilding the lily, and indeed both Sun and Lam allow the organic nature of the sonata as a whole to feel like an inevitable, teleological unfurling. … La Vie en Rose makes an apt end to this beautiful recital.” [4 stars]
LoudMouth Magazine – The Music Trust (October, 2021):
“Nocturnes features two of Australia’s most accomplished and thoughtful artists of their generation. […] a phenomenal disc of familiar French repertoire featuring two major sonatas and four stunning shorter works… Emily Sun and Andrea Lam imbue the work with the full gamut of their poetic personality. This is a captivating performance which celebrates the immense sweep of the work. The performers draw our attention to the detail and nuance of the music but at all times paint a canvas that has a poised awareness of the greater architecture. The enormity of Franck’s romantic sentiment is here perfectly executed. A truly world-class performance. … An outstanding disc that I wholeheartedly recommend.”
To stream or purchase the album: abcmusic.lnk.to/Nocturnes or please contact us here.