NPR's Tiny Desk

By Tom Huizenga

“Marc-André Hamelin has a marvelous, curious mind. While we chatted before his Tiny Desk concert, he snooped around the CD shelves near my desk, commenting on a few rarities and sharing his own eclectic tastes, including a crazy YouTube mashup of all 15 Shostakovich symphonies stacked on top of each other.

The Boston-based Montreal native is regarded as one of his generation's most technically astounding pianists, but he's no empty virtuoso. His interpretations are probing, precise and warm — keen to bring out humor when necessary. He routinely performs the world's most treacherous repertoire with his characteristic ease. I've witnessed him practically reduce a concert grand to matchsticks, and I've heard him tenderly caress a late Schubert sonata.”

Watch the mini concert here.