The following review is reproduced here by Chamber Music Columbus as a public service with permission from the Columbus Dispatch. The views expressed by the reviewer do not necessarily reflect those of Chamber Music Columbus or its audience.

REVIEW

MUSIC REVIEW | BENEDETTO LUPO

PIANIST'S ARTISTRY ENTHRALLS AUDIENCE

Published: Monday, March 14, 2005

FEATURES - LIFE 04B

By Mary Hoffman

FOR THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

Italian pianist Benedetto Lupo returned to Columbus on Saturday night to interpret the genius of Chopin, Debussy and Granados before a Southern Theatre audience held in the palms of his expressive hands.

The pianist, the winner of many international awards, used the solo recital to demonstrate not only his extraordinary artistry but also his affinity for the evening's repertoire.

Lupo devoted the first half of his program for Chamber Music Columbus to Frederic Chopin, performing works written in the mid-1840s, in the years leading to the composer's premature death. He drew immediate attention with the first notes of the Polonaise-Fantaisie in A flat Major, Op. 61 . The music, by turns peaceful and poetic, passionate and powerful, set the mood for the remainder of the evening.

Lupo then launched, with a clear vision of the music, into a breathtaking performance of the Piano Sonata No. 3 in B minor, Op. 58 , intellect and heart backing up his prodigious technical skills. The musical ideas in the "Allegro maestoso'' were clearly delineated with a sensitivity to the drama. His touch was quick and light in the "Scherzo.'' Skilled pedaling colored the nocturnelike "Largo.'' The finale, "Presto,'' was five minutes of fireworks. The audience was enthusiastic in its appreciation.

Poetry in music continued in the second half, which opened with a brilliant performance of Claude Debussy's 1903 Estampes . Inspired by Chopin's use of the piano and by artists of his day, the French composer's three impressionistic "engravings'' explore evocative musical visions of eastern Pagodas , an Evening in Granada and Gardens in the Rain .

Estampes is "sort of an imaginary vacation,'' Debussy wrote to a friend.

Goyescas , by Enrique Granados, is a trip to 18th-century Spain as seen through the work of a single artist, Goya. Lupo played vibrant music from the suites written between 1909 and 1913, and another closely associated piece, with all the flair and elegance contained in them: the contrasting Los Requiebros ("Flattery''), Quejas, o la Maja y el Ruisenor ("Laments'' or "The Lady and the Nightingale''), and El Pelele ("The Straw Doll'').

In response to the animated standing ovation, a clearly pleased Lupo delivered a virtuosic showpiece by Manuel de Falla -- Ritual Fire Dance from the ballet El Amor Brujo . It was electrifying