Borletti-Buitoni Trust
…a weekend-long anniversary celebration whose final concert line-up was stellar even by Wigmore standards. Further BBT names were in the audience, some of whom had already performed, such as Timothy Ridout, and some who had not, such as recorder player Lucie Horsch. Essentially, the music world turned out to pay homage. Quatuor Ébène opened the night with a Purcell Fantasia – warm, free, with subtle vibrato – and closed it with a spontaneous and unpredictable-feeling account of Ravel’s String Quartet. Playful sparkle, febrile shimmering and throaty ardency: this reading had it all… Add a warmly received Schubert Rondo in B minor D895 from violinist Itamar Zorman and Uchida herself, and guitarist Sean Shibe and mezzo Ema Nikolovska bringing the house down with their English duo set from Dowland to Adès, and BBT’s flag flew high.
Charlotte Gardner, The Strad, September 2023
Founded two decades ago by Franco Buitoni and his wife Ilaria in league with their good friend Mitsuko Uchida, the Borletti-Buitoni Trust never seems to put a foot wrong in its choices: the present and future are as dazzling as the last 20 years.
David Nice, The Arts Desk, 13 June 2023
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It [BBT] has been a hugely successful scheme; the names of those who have been recipients of the BBT’s awards over the last two decades include many now at the very forefront of their profession – from harpsichordist Mahan Esfahani to trumpeter Tine Thing Helseth, tenor Allan Clayton to cellist Sol Gabetta – while more than 50 works have been commissioned for them from leading composers.
Andrew Clements, The Guardian, 12 June 2023
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