‘Hough casts a scattered, multicoloured light as if through stained glass … one could write a complete analytical essay on Hough’s breathtakingly illuminating playing of the Second Ballade, but no words could convey the beauty he brings to the Fourth … playing of the purest, most controlled musicality, an approach that is in itself quintessentially Brahmsian … one is conscious of having been face to face with genius’ (Pianist)

‘Stephen Hough is among the very best of the current generation of performing artists … a thoughtful pianist who plays with great strength and depth of feeling, an impeccable technique, glowing tone colors and suitably flexible rhythms … his sense of structure is outstanding … There are other fine recordings of theses pieces … but none are better than these … His accounts are just plain wonderful … With music as beautiful and pianism as great as this – all in excellent sound – you can’t go wrong’ (American Record Guide)

‘Hough has made many fine recordings, but none better than this one’ (Classic FM Magazine)

‘If only Brahms had heard Hough, he would have carried on composing piano sonatas’ (The Evening Standard)

'Clear-textured orchestrations by Swensen, whose violin playing is terrific. Intriguing: the Brahms Trio's early version contains the Beethoven quote that Schumann used in his Fantasie in C' (BBC Music Magazine)

'More welcome Brahms orchestrations, adding more completely persuasive orchestral works to the composer’s existing body of music. The orchestration here by the conductor Joseph Swensen is completely in the spirit of Brahms. The Sinfonia in B is Swensen’s orchestration of the little-known original version of Brahms’ B major Piano Trio.' (CD Choice.co.uk)

‘Magical’ (CDReview)

‘One of the world's outstanding Lieder singers on fine form, sensitively accompanied, in 23 heart-easing miniature masterpieces’ (The Independent)

‘I'm not a fan of thick-stringed, turgid Brahms; I like to hear the inner details. That's something these players offer: everything is audible, and balances are good. The Takács create lean transparent textures with a quick, light touch; and Hough (as usual) is light on the pedal, with translucent details. Movement I is fleet, movement II has excellent flow and transparency, movement III conveys a youthful rather than 'old before his time' Brahms, with an almost magical continuity into the trio; and in movement IV, after a moody introduction, the allegro is especially effective, with waltzing hemiolas and a finale that would put Queen Mab en pointe’ (American Record Guide)

‘This is music-making on a high plane’ (Fanfare, USA)

‘"Definitive" is a dangerous word to use about any performance, especially when the work in question is the rich and repeatedly recorded Piano Quintet Op 34 by Brahms. But this eloquent, expansive and altogether thrilling account by the Takács Quartet and pianist Stephen Hough tempts a listener to invoke every superlative in the book. Both in its broad design and in its attentively wrought details, this is music making of a very high order. Phrasing is by turns lyrically wistful, swaggering and teasingly restrained. The Andante dies away mysteriously. The Scherzo strides off with almost frightening intensity. The final movement unfolds as a seamless, gripping narrative. A choice performance of the String Quartet Op 51, No 2, made sly, tender and muscular by the Takács, is a worthy companion piece’ (San Francisco Chronicle)

‘These elegant Brahms performances manage to elucidate the darker, more turbulent emotions of the composer while maintaining a sense of intimacy’ (Audiophile Audition, USA)