Vilde Frang's micro-sensitive responses to dynamic, articulation and phrasing...prove a revelation in the heady opulence of the Strauss, which has never sounded so urgently seductive or expressively supple on disc...Finest of all is Bartók's fiendishly demanding Solo Sonata, a virtuoso minefield of technical and musical ingenuity which Frang negotiates with an unflinching sense of musical direction.

Though Frang's tone generally appears quite light and silvery, she has ample reserves, and none of the climactic moments [in the Strauss] disappoint......In the Bartók I was immediately struck by Frang's fine rhythmic sense and varied tonal palette. Her playing has the necessary physicality for Bartók, without ever appearing forced...overall it's a top-class performance and, indeed, the whole programme is clearly a winner.

This is a singularly impressive recital, both for the choice of music - a mixed programme that works very well as a continuous listen...in which the performances are really quite compelling. Such commanding interpretations are made the more so by the musicians being ideally recorded...This is a spectacularly fine disc of unhackneyed repertoire in richly expressive performances.

In Grieg’s youthful Sonata in F she’s feisty and poetic as the mood turns, with effortless flourishes. Strauss’s equally youthful Sonata in E billows with prodigal invention...[The Bartok is] strongly dispatched with plenty of muscle and heart. Adroit, impassioned, never shallow, Frang is the real thing.

Frang plays with astonishing dexterity and musicianship, putting paid to the notion that only Hungarian musicians can play Bartok with any real understanding. This is a quite compelling performance.