Reviews
The Straits Times, August 2024, on Mr. Ho's Recital at Black Earth Recital Studio.
"Ho [exhibited] a steely focus as his brooding rendition of Mozart's Fantasia gave way to a structurally coherent interpretation of Liszt's towering Sonata ... Ho displayed dazzling technique [and] bravura ... Ho's three – of twelve – Op. 11 etudes were musically and technically substantial when performed alongside the masters'."
Khmer Times, August 2023, on Mr. Ho's Recital at the Himawari Hotel Apartments, Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
"A rising star pianist created a mesmerising atmosphere with his brilliant performance at Phnom Penh’s Himawari Hotel Apartments..."
Pianomania (Dr. Chang Tou Liang), February 2023, on Mr. Ho’s Recital at Victoria Concert Hall.
“The piece de resistance of the concert was the world premiere of Nicholas Ho’s own 12 Etudes in its revised edition. These have been influenced by Liszt’s (or Alkan’s) transcendental technique but are closer in idiom to Debussy, Ligeti and Marc-Andre Hamelin’s famous dozens. Each etude was dedicated to Nicholas’ teachers [and friends] and exploits different facets of a pianist’s technical armamentarium… Rapid rhythms possess most of the pieces but feathery lightness and playing of utter sensuousness were also in evidence… There was never a dull moment in these 50 minutes, which Nicholas ripped through completely from memory, before closing with an imposing Prelude and Fugue a la Hamelin. And did one notice a Star Trek motif inserted within the Prelude, before the piece launched itself into the stratosphere, infinity and beyond?”
Sir Stephen Hough, December 2023, on Mr. Ho’s Twelve Études, Op. 11.
“Nicholas Ho’s Etudes are an important addition to the repertoire. They are full of invention, colour and virtuosity, combining intellectual rigour with emotional warmth.”
Pianomania (Dr. Chang Tou Liang), January 2022, on Mr. Ho’s debut album, Illumine, on Arabesque Records.
“This recording on the American Arabesque label … marks a coming of age. His unusual programming of sonatas by Elliott Carter and Sergei Rachmaninoff with his original music make for compelling listening … Ho handles [Carter’s Sonata] with clarity and suitable aplomb … Ho crafts his own version [of Rachmaninoff’s Second Sonata] … a mellow yet smouldering and passionate reading.”
Pianomania (Dr. Chang Tou Liang), October 2021, on Mr. Ho’s Recital of Chopin, Schumann, Jacob TV, and Ho. “The young pianist Nicholas Ho … [is] a bona fide virtuoso with uncommon talents … Chopin’s Nocturne in C minor … was dark and smouldering … he amply brought out its brooding qualities, before launching headlong into Schumann’s Fantasie in C, with its full flush of hot-blooded romanticism worn heart-on-sleeve … a more satisfying performance would be hard to find.… To close the recital was the World Premiere of the first six of Nicholas Ho’s Twelve Etudes Op. 11 … Nicholas’ playing is … emphatic … The colours on his palette seem almost infinite … I can proudly proclaim that Singapore has found a set of piano etudes worthy to be mentioned in the same breath as the likes of Debussy, Ligeti, and Marc-André Hameli. Handphones off, a genius!”
Fanfare Magazine, July 2021, on Mr. Ho’s debut album, Illumine, on Arabesque Records. “From the opening measures of the [Rachmaninoff] sonata the Singapore-born Ho, displays the right instincts… impassioned without being blowsy, and Rachmaninoff’s surges of florid writing are well controlled … Ho’s technique is fluent and powerful … A Russian powerhouse like Denis Matsuev mounts a frontal assault on the finale where Ho is a subtle strategist with something personal to say … Ho’s take on Elliott Carter’s Piano Sonata … [is] a compelling reading … For someone born in 1992 to have the intellectual capacity for penetrating Carter’s sonata and then to realize a performance that communicates so naturally to the listener is remarkable.”
The Straits Times, July 2017, on Mr. Ho’s performance of Robert Casteels’ Piano Concerto. “The world premiere of Robert’s Casteels’ Piano Concerto … [was] impressively articulated by Nicholas Ho … eventful, [and] inventive …”
The Straits Times, August 2015, on Mr. Ho’s performance of the Prokofiev Third Piano Concerto. “Altogether … confident was Nicholas Ho who tackled Prokofiev’s Third Piano Concerto with fearless aplomb…the effect was electrifying.”