Press Links

New England trio matches colorful cultures, Facts & Arts

Saugerties Pro Musica fills the gap, Hudson Valley One

Cello and piano share the spotlight in Rachmaninov's sonata, Facts & Arts

New Quartet Launched at French Cultural Center, The Boston Musical Intelligencer

Hartka-Hayes Duo in MA Meetinghouse, The Boston Musical Intelligencer

International Roots: Cellist Rebecca Hartka's Debut Album "Folkfire", Lilipoh Magazine

Press Quotes and Testimonials

"Hartka and Lezcano play off against each other in a subtle but effective unity of rubato relationships that brings off the sonatas with a personality that catches the ears and holds them… Hartka and Lysakowski are just as subtle in their playing, making their Debussy sonata well worth having. This is unusual and well played."
— D. Moore, American Record Guide

"A powerful new recording of Rachmaninov's familiar Sonata for Cello and Piano in G Minor Op. 19 (Light and Shadow, Becsta Records) manages to take this rich Russian music to new heights. It ranks comfortably alongside several impressive readings by other major cellists."
— Michael Johnson, Facts & Arts

"Their performance of Beethoven's 'Bei Mannern' Variations had excellent balance, both instruments strongly present, along with plenty of spirit, wide dynamics and nuance."
"Both instruments sounded just plain wonderful, and I loved the rhapsodic quality of the slow movement."
"...both players showed great subtlety and color in this enigmatic music"
— Leslie Gerber, Woodstock Times

"Hartka gets much spirit into the fiery material. Falla's Jota has lots of verve, as does the bravura Maruntel that closes Bartok's Romanian Dances. Villa-Lobos's Black Swan is projected with lyrical warmth, while Michio's Sea in Springtime has plenty of atmosphere. The pastoral elements in the Vaughan Williams are effectively delineated"
— The Strad

"... No less than magical and eloquent."
— Hanoi Times

"...(Hartka) emotes a passion worthy of a symphony orchestra"
"Hartka evokes the natural world in the hidden intricacies of folk song refrains..."
"Lulls the listener into the type of trance one might enter while watching the sun rise over a misty foliage-filled New England morning."
— Adrienne Berard, Daily Hampshire Gazette

"...The best and most wonderful part of all this is that Hartka "gets it"—all of it. Yet she manages to do so without ever stealing the glory from the music... Rather, we're in direct touch with the soul of the music throughout."
"Nana a spare study in loneliness allows a clear view of Hartka's special gifts: a restrained intensity and a passion for precision that never imposes itself upon the music, or succumbs to the temptation to show off..."
— Joseph Marcello, Greenfield Recorder

"Rebecca Hartka made the Brahms melodies heart rending."
— Martha Dorrill, Farmville Herald

"There's a generosity of spirit in all the performances—it invites us in and then sets us free."
— Patrice Maynard, Renewal Magazine