“The opening item of the concert, the short but technically demanding Trois Strophes of Henri Dutilleux received a virtuosic and intensely emotional rendering from cellist Rainer Crosett.”

“If anyone can make me warm to [Penderecki’s] music, Rainer Crosett can... very characterful music, said Rainer; astonishingly skilful and characterful playing, certainly.”

“If I describe Rainer’s playing as meditative, contemplative, it might suggest that it is lacking in fire, which is emphatically not the case; it might reflect his total absorption in the music he is playing, or the effect his music-making has on me as I listen.”

“The high-spirited concluding Vif, with its white-knuckle swerves of tempo, rhythm and dynamics, brought such vivid and committed playing from Laura and Rainer that one could only gasp. It is a piece that demands courage as well as superb skill, and it got both!”

“The Beethoven demonstrated to an enthusiastic audience the ability of the players to plumb the full technical and emotional range of one of the most demanding pieces in the chamber music repertoire.”

“The concert had opened in sensational style with a performance by Rainer Crosett of Dutilleux’s Trois Strophes sur le nom de Sacher for solo cello.... Rainer played it from memory, with total commitment and conviction – the hallmarks of all the performances I have heard in Romsey. His lucid and engaging introduction to the piece was an example of another feature of the house style here, greatly appreciated by the audience.”

“Gently improvisatory, undulating, in Rainer’s hands it sounded as natural as the river flowing behind him, accompanied at a discreet distance by birdsong. His playing of the five dances that follow the Prelude was equally thoughtful, marked by spontaneity and freedom: nothing was ever forced. The concluding Gigue was a joy. Whenever I hear this suite in the future, I think it will bring this experience to my memory.”

“Here was playing of such passion and authority one might have thought its quasi-orchestral textures belonged to Beethoven. Nowhere have I heard this work played with such vigour.”