“Each tone is very much a sharply discreet entity and yet fused to the totality through a masterly sense of tonal and rhythmic hierarchy… The recital opens with a terrific account of Domeniconi’s Koyunbaba… In Albéniz’s Mallorca, she presses the melody against the underlying harmonies to produce an exquisite brocade effect, while in Aguado’s Andante and Rondo she lets her hair down, the Andante’s mock pomposity leading to a salon-lite Rondo of tremendous fun. And yet Sandsengen’s best playing — by turns emphatic, fragile, bold, tender and wild — can be heard right at the beginning, in Koyunbaba. It’s no mean feat to force you to reappraise such a well-known work. Sandsengen pulls it off.”
– William Yeoman, Gramophone Magazine
“…debut collection showcasing skill and no small virtuosity”
– Andy Gill, The Independent
“…for some reason, classical guitar seems to have attracted fewer women than just about any other instrument. Christina Sandsengen is here to change that.”
– Jerry Dubins, Fanfare Magazine
“And whilst Sandsengen’s Nordic beauty is as disarming as her steely determination, her picture perfect photos belie a guttural musical voice. In Asturias, for example, she’s as unafraid to tackle the elegance, passion and drama of the piece, as she is to explore its uglier yearning depths. She’s a sylphish panacea, if you like, to the heat of Macedonian heart- breaker Miloš Karadaglić.”
– Maria Roberts, The International Arts Manager
“Truly extraordinary… in every moment we have the feeling of being before an important and, above all, very personal guitarist.”
– Josep Pascual, Scherzo
“Norwegian guitarist Christina Sandsengen’s technique is flawless, and hearing her left hand nimbly skate up and down the fingerboard serves only to increase one’s admiration.”
– Graham Rickson, The Arts Desk
“Christina Sandsengen is no mere strummer. Instead she is a sensitive listener, who delves deep into the spirit of the music. With her precise, soft touch she unfolds a delicate and light sound, that manages to move the listener even without a lot of vibrato.”
– Guy Engels, Pizzicato
“It would be an understatement to say that Sandsengen’s technique is fully up to the task; it’s actually of arresting brilliance.”
– Jerry Dubins, Fanfare Magazine
“Sandsengen’s debut album showcasing a rare virtuosity and astoundingly multi-faceted talent.”
– Zhanna Koiviola, GB Times
“Standard works by Albéniz, Tárrega, Aguado and Agustin Barrios Mangoré are mixed with contemporary works by Sven Lundestad, Carlo Domeniconi and Egberto Gismonti in a varied and highly impressive recital. These are outstanding performances, delivered with a flawless technique and sumptuous tone.”
– The WholeNote Magazine
“Christina Sandsengen – The Human Voice of the Classical Guitar”
– Yusimi Rodriguez, Havana Times
“If Sandsengen plays Carlo Domeniconi ‘Koyunbaba’ or ‘Late at Night’ by her compatriot Sven Lundestad, she demonstrates brilliantly and with crystal clarity where things are headed for her: to enthuse a young and broader audience with the ‘most popular instrument in the world’…”
– Sell, Crescendo
“…this accomplished recital certainly augurs well for the future.”
– International Record Review
“Christina Sandsengen’s Shades & Contrasts is a fantastic debut filled with virtuosity and beautifully expansive phrasing. I will eagerly await more from this bright young artist.”
– Bradford Werner, thisisclassicalguitar.com
“It’s this juxtaposition between the arid rhythmic urgency of Latin music, and the coolness of the Norwegian sea, that Sandsengen draws on to create texture in Shades & Contrasts: her personal traits pro- vide a hint of danger, whilst her controlled technique presents the illusion of demure guardedness.”
– Maria Roberts, The International Arts Manager
“…divinely played and deeply moving program. If you love classical guitar, this disc is absolutely indispensable.”
– Jerry Dubins, Fanfare Magazine
“Sandsengen never fails to dazzle audiences with her Nordic beauty and the sensitive and sophisticated voice of her guitar.”
– Zhanna Koiviola, GB Times
“If you want to talk about a guitarist with a deep soul and a “cool fire”, then you can talk about the Norwegian Christina Sandsengen who is perfect in all aspects.”
– Musenblätter Kulturmagazin
“I have finally heard “Shades and Contrasts” and I honestly feel that anything that is left to say about her is there, in the voice that speaks to us through the strings.”
– Yusimi Rodriguez, Havana Times
“Long melodies, performed by Christina Sandsengen with great sensitivity – the Norwegian guitarist indulges in the surges of emotion found in the compositions presented on this CD.”
– Elke Ottenschläger, HR
“The best on the album is Dionisio Aguados’ “Andante & Rondo”… Sandsengen plays the dotted chords in the opening melancholically like an tragic overture, and even though she is stretching and bending the pulse a lot, her phrasing has an organic drive.”
– Klassisk Musikkmagasin
“Her Barbie-looking photo on the cover of the CD had made me see her as a sophisticated, almost cold, woman quite different from the sensitive, thoughtful person I had the chance to interview.”
– Yusimi Rodriguez, Havana Times