‘Splendid and masterful virtuosity, unprecedented risk, exceptional style become one in these two musicians […] One hears works of Mozart very few times in such a convincing way.’
Stuttgarter Zeitung
‘They made two pianos sound like the Wiener Philharmoniker’
Panamá América- Epasa
‘A prodigy: audible beauty and virtuosity in their exceptional innovation of piano skill.’
El País
‘Smashing, but not breaking, these wonderful artists respect style and technique but state clearly their own voice, young and bold, full of life and humour, expressive and highly musical.’
La Provincia. Diario de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria
‘We were ready for them. And they came with the expected success that goes with them [...] the wait to witness a full concert with them was worth it.’
Málagahoy
Piano four hands is still, even nowadays, regarded with some suspicion as rather old-fashioned, homely music. The most important pieces date from Biedermeier's day and require no great virtuosity. In the case of piano duets with two pianos, the general opinion is that good concert performances need two grand pianos. However, the Del Valle Duo will convince the greatest sceptic that great art can be produced in both forms of music.
The high point of the evening's performance at the Cristophori Pianosalon is Franz Schubert's fantasy in F minor, a spontaneous addition to what was already a wide-ranging program, and which is second to none in existential depth and transcendence. This is a much loved piece which many great pianists have played , but rarely has it been performed with greater sensitivity than by the Del Valle brothers, Victor and Luis. This is due not only to the perfect harmony between the two pianists, but also to their technical perfection. The evenness of the phrasing, the rhythmic presence, the unity of tone and colour of the sound - all of this gives the impression of being played by just one person. The usual division between a high, dominant descant and the bass "accompaniment " has finally been eliminated here, so that the music sounds like a transparent tissue made up of uninterrupted voices. As a result, we discover previously unheard melodies, dialogues between the performers which are in turn imploring, whispering, consoling and threatening. They reveal the meaning of the work in a completely new way. Profoundly moved, the audience applauds.
Both of these Spanish pianists play in an unusually individual style, full of apparently spontaneous ideas which are nonetheless always stylistically correct. Mozart's Sonata in C Major KV521 sounds flirtatious, as the brothers toss the ball back and forth, stopping and starting as they play mischievously with changing tempos. The intense eye contact between them, often coupled with a smile, helps us to understand what the composer is up to here. The flexibility of tempo contributes to the plasticity of the different episodes in Ravel's "Waltz" : Bubbling shadows from which emerges the first melody of the waltz, rising into a strident dance on the volcano and then collapsing. "Variations on a theme by Paganini" by Witold Lutoslawski shines with incisive rhythm and dissonant humour. A certain laconic intelligence brings colours to "Five Pieces" by Ligeti - at times it is almost wicked- while Percy Grainger's piano arrangement of George Gershwin's Porgy and Bess unfurls the whole panorama of this opera: Colourful, dramatic and exciting.