Russian pianist Yulianna Avdeeva was the talk of the town after her Australian debut, a recital of Chopin and Liszt at City Recital Hall a year ago almost to the day. She shot to fame when she won the Warsaw Chopin Competition in 2010 and has carved out a name for herself as a Chopin interpreter, so it’s fitting that her return to Australia for performances with the Melbourne and Sydney symphony orchestras should feature the pianist-composer’s Piano Concerto No 1 in E Minor (his second written, in 1830, but first published concerto).

Yulianna Avdeeva, Andrey Boreyko and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra. Photo © Daniela Testa

Following a lush string opening coaxed from the orchestra by fellow Russian Andrey Boreyko on the podium, Avdeeva’s first solo entry immediately demonstrated why she’s become such a sensation – with ringing power and crystalline tone she made the piano sing with incredible presence. And indeed, throughout the Concerto she gave the music a lithe, agile strength that never became heavy, her sound glittering in Chopin’s passage-work and cascading descents, with moments of playfulness whirling into Romantic drama. Avdeeva’s second movement entry, ushered...