Marianne's reviews
MARIANNE THORSEN reviews
Thorsen's sweet-toned purity, ringing intonation and beguiling espressivo prove ideal for the composer's essentially gentle inspiration. Svendsen could hardly wish for a more sympathetic and persuasive exponent than Thorsen, who receives first-rate backing from Neeme Järvi and his Bergen players in seductively realistic sound.
THE STRADSvendsen Violin Concerto with Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra / Järvi Chandos
Engagingly fleet-fingered, sweet-toned, mellifluous performances, topped off with perfect cadenzas.
CLASSIC FM MAGAZINE, FIVE STARSMozart Concertos 3-5 with the Trondheim SoloistsNorwegian Spellemann Prize: Best Classical Album
2L
This was masterly playing, impeccably phrased and articulated. Rarely has Mozart come dancing off the page so enticingly. Thorsen's deeply committed playing succeeds in making the music both expressively cogent and structurally compelling.
INTERNATIONAL RECORD REVIEWMozart Concertos 3-5 with the Trondheim SoloistsNorwegian Spellemann Prize: Best Classical Album2L
Marianne Thorsen is a searching artist, as many will know from her work with the Leopold String Trio and Nash Ensemble. She is an impressive violinist too and commands a fine range of tonal and expressive gradations, as in the first-movement cadenza of K218.
GRAMOPHONE MAGAZINE
Mozart Concertos 3-5 with the Trondheim Soloists
Norwegian Spellemann Prize: Best Classical Album
2L
Violinist Marianne Thorsen and viola player Lawrence Power were the soloists in the Sinfonia Concertante K364. It was alive, spontaneous, witty, and crucially conveyed the sense of two very fine instrumentalists exchanging ideas, and commenting upon them. One moment Thorsen was the more expansively expressive, then the next it would be Power, yet their playing always dovetailed expertly.
THE GUARDIAN
Concert review, Thorsen as Soloist with the Philharmonia / Power / Brüggen
The dialogue between the violinist Marianne Thorsen and violist Lawrence Power was wonderfully alert and spontaneous. Cadenzas were suspenseful.
THE TIMES
Concert review, Thorsen as Soloist with the Philharmonia / Power / Brüggen
From then on, the concert proved a perpetual delight. By the time the ardent and graceful Marianne Thorsen and the soulful and mischievous Lawrence Power had had their youthful, spontaneous way with the Sinfonia concertante, one felt one had lived through a whole sequence of wordless operatic duets running the expressive gamut from flirtatiousness to tragedy.
THE INDEPENDENT
Concert review, Thorsen as Soloist with the Philharmonia / Power / Brüggen
The glory of the evening, however, was the Norwegian violinist Marianne Thorsen's performance of Nielsen's Violin Concerto - technically first-rate and full of love for this very lovable music.
THE INDEPENDENT
Concert Review, Nielsen Concerto Performance, London
Thorsen played with confidence and utter musical assurance, with a singing rich tone, great power of projection, meticulous accuracy of intonation and attack and with deeply felt expressivity.
THE STRAD
Concert Review, Nielsen Concerto Performance, London
There are magic moments galore along the way, but to hear Marianne Thorsen (ravishing portamentos) soar aloft with the pulsating phrases is an unforgettable experience.
INTERNATIONAL RECORD REVIEW
Kleiberg Concerto with the Trondheim Symphony Orchestra / Daniel Reuss
2L
The excellent Marianne Thorsen warms to her compatriot's soulful, singing melodies, soaring...throwing herself into a flying-fingered cadenza...irresistable flair and energy.
THE STRAD
Kleiberg Concerto with the Trondheim Symphony Orchestra / Daniel Reuss
2L
Marianne Thorsen, in the Violin Concerto, can go from some of the most expressive dolce playing I've heard to navigating breathtaking technical cadenza-like passages with ease as effortlessly as a chameleon changes colors. Five gold stars; and more.
FANFARE MAGAZINE
Kleiberg Concerto with the Trondheim Symphony Orchestra / Daniel Reuss
2L
It is hard to imagine a better performance of this piece; Thorsen's purity of tone, strength and control of line, vibrant expressiveness and formidable technical ability make for a gripping and moving interpretation. Marianne Thorsen is unerring in transmitting her deeply emotional self-communing...integrates tricky double-stopping effortlessly into her lyrical flow. (The concerto) concludes with a long solo cadenza, as free as air and almost extempore in Thorsen's hands; brilliantly expressive and technically flawless in execution. Enthusiastically recommended.
SA-CD
Kleiberg Concerto with the Trondheim Symphony Orchestra / Daniel Reuss
2L