REVIEWS

“Arabesque's Gabriela Imreh plays Piano Transcriptions features the acclaimed, Transylvanian-born, New York based virtuoso in six, standard format concert transcriptions and 12 pieces drawn from George Gershwin's Song Book, a volume of transcribed songs that Gershwin himself compiled in 1932. On Gabriela Imreh plays Piano Transcriptions, Arabesque has captured her in fine form, and this release reveals that Imreh's interpretations of these transcriptions are unique. She emphasizes lilt and sensitivity in the Gershwin transcriptions, often performed in a broad and raggy style that can be at odds with the still essentially vocal nature of these numbers. Imreh demonstrates clarity and restraint in Liszt's own solo transcription of his concerted Totentanz, and it's nice to hear this ominous work played with something of the classicistic touch that Liszt himself is said to have employed; this is the highlight of the disc. Imreh does not engage discernable force with the piano anywhere on this disc, but is consistently light-fingered, agile, and expressive, and this helps to make the Rachmaninoff transcriptions sing out; these are lovely accounts of some of Rachmaninoff's least known piano works.” ALLMUSIC.COM

“Imreh persuades us that the arrangements offered on this CD add to an appreciation of the originals. With Carl Tausig’s transcriptions of J.S. Bach’s D Minor Toccata and Fugue, Imreh doesn’t attempt an organ-like sonority; instead she takes full advantage of the textural clarity her instrument allows to give the music, the fugue especially, forward momentum and dramatic shape. There’s a lovely wistfulness to the opening section of Cesar Franck’s Prelude, Fugue, and Variations with a natural and fluid flow to the melody. Liszt’s own transcription of the orchestral work Totentanz begins with a demonic tread; extravagant glissandi contribute to a mood of edge-of-your-seat excitement.  Imreh moves easily from a realm of exquisite delicacy to…well, Lisztian bombast. Sergei Rachmaninoff’s famous Vocalise, as re-imagined by Zoltan Kocsis—clearly, the art of making piano transcriptions hasn’t died!__show off the soloist’s formidable technique. There’s a section toward the end that truly sounds as though the pianist has three hands.” PHILADELPHIA MUSIC MAKERS MAGAZINE

“Gabriela Imreh is a Rumanian-born pianist based in New Jersey. She extensively concertizes and has released several worthy CDs for Connoisseur Society, a label well known for its keyboard recordings. This disc can also be counted a success. . . Imreh provides fresh insights into the originals, exploiting the clarifying textures of the piano with a fluent and confident technique. The piano sound from the American Academy of Arts and Letters in New York City, captured by veteran producer/engineer Max Wilcox, is magnificent.” THE ABSOLUTE SOUND

“Romanian-born, locally based Gabriela Imreh is hard to resist, partly because she believes the Gershwin songs are extremely important matters, and doesn't buy into the imposing pretensions of the more virtuosic stuff. Though she can summon thundering, steel-fingered bass notes, it's the distilled delicacy of her treble playing that tells you she's a world-class talent.  (Arabesque***1/2) PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER

 “Imreh captures all the beauty of these well known works and delivers them with beautiful and rich tone from her Yamaha CFIII.” CLASSICAL MUSIC GUIDE

“There’s much to glean from Gabriela Imreh’s solid technique and musicianship. In the Tausig/Bach D minor Toccata & Fugue and Bauer/Franck Prelude, Fugue and Variation, Imreh downplays the transcribers’ full-bodies attempts at organ replication, emphasizing line over mass. She conveys enough textural differentiation in the Liszt Totentanz to evoke the work’s original concerto incarnation, with piano and orchestra battling it out. . . Her clear-cut and well controlled readings of Rachmaninov’s delectable Kreisler transformations (the Liebeslied and Liebesfreud) contrast to the transcriber’s more angular, scintillating pianism. . . Perhaps the Kocis/Rachmaniov Vocalise best showcases Imreh’s innate lyric gifts and sensitivity. . . Max Wilcox’s warm, realistic production and the pianist’s extensive, excellent booklet notes add value to this release.” CLASSICS TODAY

“Romanian-born pianist Gabriela Imreh, now a Philadelphian with impressive ties to our city’s musical scene, is known internationally for her keyboard artistry . . . She recently added to her discography with a debut on the celebrated Arabesque label with a series of piano transcriptions of works by Liszt, Bach, Franck, Gershwin, and Rachmaninoff, all played with the brilliance and thoughtfulness she demonstrates in her frequent local performances with Daniel Spalding’s Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra.” UNIVERSITY CITY REVIEW (PHILADELPHIA)