Stephen Waarts’ high style made us treasure the invention in the miniatures Salut d’amour and La capricieuse
The Arts Desk, October 2022
Critical Acclaim
Stephen Waarts’ high style made us treasure the invention in the miniatures Salut d’amour and La capricieuse
The double concerto in A minor op. 102 by Brahms then achieved reference quality with the somnambulistic interacting soloists Stephen Waarts, who stood in for an unwell Janine Jansen, and Steven Isserlis. Rarely has one heard the piece so light-footed, elegant and full of sentiment.
When he begins to play, he burns with expressive fire and tonal vitality.
[Schubert’s Konzertstück] is now brought to light by the charismatic violinist Stephen Waarts in a similarly fragile beauty. Unbelievably variable in terms of sound, with charm and wit in the sense of humorously accentuated escalation.
Stephen Waarts’s debut album on Rubicon has already disclosed a Bartók interpreter of terrific flair; here he tore into the gypsy roots of the underrated Second Rhapsody as if letting go after several rounds with Ravel’s Tzigane.
His clear and sharp sound and his unparalleled technique are tailor-made for this chiseled work (Hindemith, Kammermusik No.4)
[..] a young master, who has the makings of a really great career, had played here at Schoenberg’s “New Names"
The violinist Stephen Waarts [..] had lots of fire, energy and passion with the technical ability to jump every unplayable hurdle with ease. And last but not least, of course, a musically unmistakable charisma.
I'm convinced he's the real deal.
The slow movement was particularly striking, as Waarts sang the contemplative characteristics in a mature way that brought to mind a young Yehudi Menuhin.
The music’s expressive power was always controlled and his beautiful tone enriched every note.
Mr. Waarts was commanding in Prokofiev’s Violin Concerto No. 2 in G minor… Mr. Waarts tapped into tensions within the Neo-Classical veneer of Prokofiev’s music. That opening movement goes through dramatic shifts, from moments of dreamy lyricism, which Mr. Waarts shaped with melting beauty, to bursts of perpetual-motion busyness, which he dispatched with articulate fervor.
Before his 18th birthday, this Bay Area violinist competed took top prize in the 2013 Young Concert Artists International Auditions, earning him a coveted spot on the roster. Waarts has also competed in the 2013 Montreal International Competition (Second Prize and Audience Prize); the 2014 Menuhin Competition (First Prize); and the 2015 Queen Elisabeth Violin […]
Musicians of outstanding ability are such an important part of our culture. But they are like flowers that must bloom at a particular time. They have to be helped at the right moments… — Avery Fisher
The Dutch-American violinist has a vigorous, energetic touch and a very advanced technique. The music sounds elegant and cultured when he sings it with his silver tone.
The Eindhovense listeners at least have recognised and embraced him as a musical genius.
A video with Stephen Waarts answering 20 questions for the “violin Channel”
Stephen Waarts has won numerous international violin competitions, including the 2013 Montreal International Musical Competition, the 2011 Sarasate Competition, the 2010 Menuhin Competition-Junior Section, and the 2010 Spohr Competition-Junior Section. There is apparently no magic recipe to survive a competition. "You always have to make sure that you are not trying to please anybody more than when you play a concert. I think competition is concert."
Stephen Waarts gave an outstanding debut at the Kennedy Center’s Terrace Theater. In a fine program of Beethoven, Bartok, Ravel and Waxman — difficult music, in a range of styles and impeccably rendered — Waarts showed an uncommon, preternatural sense of tonal color and lyrical beauty on the instrument.
Mr. Waarts showed himself a technically accomplished and musically insightful artist, though he was most impressive in Bartok’s extraordinary Sonata for Solo Violin. Mr. Waarts, playing commandingly from memory, balanced passages that evolve in the halting dance idiom of the chaconne with rhapsodic stretches that in this gripping account seemed somberly ruminative. He was comparably inspired in the resolute intricate fugue, the searching slow movement marked Melodia, and the frenetic finale.
Recorded during the Orford Festival Canada
Broadcast by New York's classical radio station WQXR on The McGraw Hill Financial Young Artists Showcase presented by Robert Sherman.
From the first note … I was hooked, and within a few bars, I was moved to tears (2010 Menuhin Competition in Oslo, Norway)