naïve
Purchase

“Here is a really rewarding contribution to the Ravel 150th anniversary year. The South Korean pianist Yeol Eum Son has committed to disc extremely thoughtful and, I think, wholly successful performances of both piano concertos….(Son) is a pianist of considerable sensitivity and imagination. She brings those qualities to bear on this new album to vibrant effect….

I felt lifted and exhilarated as a listener.

Throughout the concerto (for the Left Hand), Son’s tonal beauty and purity of sound are as remarkable as her technical facility. It’s a profoundly satisfying performance, musically and intellectually, with Residentie Orkest The Hague being the most responsive partners imaginable.

(Bach/Wittgenstein)…an ingenious narrative perspective which both surprises and delights.

Naïve’s recording is excellent. Both concertos were recorded live and exude the spark of live performances but without audience noise. Yeol Eum Son offers the most intelligent and insightful performer’s liner notes I have read in a long time. They’re a very considerable bonus in a highly compelling package.”

Dominic Hartley

(Ravel: Piano Concertos - Bach/Wittgenstein), Fanfare Magazine November/December 2025

“Certainly, her prime qualities show up vividly, especially in the G major: her tonal purity, her limpid elegance (evident in the pristine trill and gossamer glissandos in the first movement), her imaginative dynamics and articulartio (listen to the piano jabs in the finale). And the performances are full of interpretative insight, too (check out the poignancy of the Gershwinesque lyricism at fig 7 in the first movement).”
Peter J Rabinowitz

Ravel: Piano Concertos album review, Gramophone

“Son’s take on the G major concerto glitters, her perceptive booklet essay reminding us how brittle Ravel’s keyboard writing is …. The clarity of the playing is startling, though it’s never clinical: sample Son’s spiky lead-in to the first movement recapitulation. The concerto for the Left Hand is another triumph, this gnarlier, darker work proof that “one hand alone is enough to conquer the world”….A terrific disc, beautifully recorded.”
Sebastian Scotney

Ravel: Piano Concertos album review, The Arts Desk

“I really enjoyed this CD….I particularly like the performance of Ravel; I think it’s really good fun. I think she (Yeol Eum) really attacks it with a sense of joy with a wry smile. There’s real darkness in that concerto as well but I think she finds those moments of joy in the way she performs them.”
“I think in the opening …, she manages a huge number of moods and styles in quite a short space of time. We’ve got the introspective qualities of the solo, we’ve got the more declamatory moments and this general sense of ebb and flow which she (Yeol Eum) manages really astutely and with real care”.
Soosan Lolavar

Ravel: Piano Concertos album review, BBC Radio 3 Record Review

“Two elements make the performance of the flightier concerto in G major stand out from the pack: One is the irresistible sense of forward motion during the faster sections; the other, its complement, is the languid loveliness that settles in whenever Ravel’s foot is off the accelerator”
Geoff Brown

Ravel: Piano Concertos album review, The Times - 'The best classical albums of 2025 so far'

“Son’s performances of the piano concertos are exacting and punctilious. For all of Son’s careful consideration and studied method, she plays with robust commitment and attention to detail. The Bach pieces are interesting and fit well with the recital. This is a well-programmed recording with much attention devoted to detail. The Residentie Orkest The Hague, under the baton of Anja Bihlmaier, is animated and responsive. This is a fine recording from any direction.”
C. Michael Bailey

Ravel: Piano Concertos album review, Wild Mercury Rhythm

Ravel: Piano Concertos – Bach/Wittgenstein

Track Listing

Maurice Ravel: Piano Concerto in G Major, M. 83
Maurice Ravel: Piano Concerto for the Left Hand in D Major, M. 82
J. S. Bach: Das wohltemperierte Klavier I, Prelude and Fugue in C Major, BWV 846: Prelude
J. S. Bach: Prelude in C Minor, BWV 999
J. S. Bach: Partita No. 1 in B-Flat Major, BWV 825: VII. Gigue
J. S. Bach: Sonata for Flute and Harpsichord in E-Flat Major, BWV 1031: II. Siciliano