“Diane Walsh, an underrated pianist (even after her Broadway stint in “33 Variations”), plays an underrated Schubert work, the smaller of the A minor sonatas, a personal favorite. The first movement’s second theme is one of Schubert’s most melting inspirations even before he sweetens it with triplets in the recapitulation. Ms. Walsh plays it beautifully and gives a fine account of the posthumous B flat Sonata, which is rated right about where it should be: at the top.” - James R. Oestreich

“A romantic pianist with a finely honed, expressive temperament, Diane Walsh played an exquisite recital at Le Petit Trianon Theatre, San Jose, Saturday, October 30, courtesy of the Steinway Society the Bay Area. A small but enthralled audience sat quite mesmerized by Walsh’s program of Liszt and Schumann, which combined Old-World lyricism and American technical finesse in an uncommon alchemy of rare and poignant beauty.” - Gary R. Lemco

“The "Diabelli Variations" are majestically performed live by pianist Diane Walsh, in an order that has its own lyrical logic. The overall effect is traveling not just to a different time and place but also through the music of the spheres.” - Charles McNulty

“The pianist Diane Walsh plays extended excerpts from the Diabelli Variations, elegantly, in full view of the audience. In a way Ms. Walsh is a character in the play....Meanwhile, at preview performances of "33 Variations", Ms. Walsh's splendid recording for JDR (Jonathan Digital Recordings), available in the lobby, has been selling "like hotcakes," Mr. Kaufman said.” - Anthony Tommasini

“A performer of great honesty and integrity. [Beethoven's] Sonata in E major Op. 109, one of the sublime masterpieces in all of music, got a performance worthy of its status--lyrical, contemplative, powerful, and very moving.” - Michael Manning

“Her stately, warm-toned performance suggested that she thinks of [Bach's Partita No. 4 in D] in orchestral terms, and the most winning aspect of her performance was that she was able to create the illusion of orchestral heft while sacrificing nothing of the transparency that Bach’s counterpoint demands. She also did a fine job of characterizing the individual dance movements, particularly the Allemande, which floated with a gentle sweetness, and the closing Gigue, which was a torrent of energy.” - Allan Kozinn

“[Clara Schumann’s Piano Concerto in A minor] is a lively, sometimes playful work, with a sparkling piano part that offers a glimpse of the technique for which Clara was renowned. Walsh gave it a thoughtful performance, with enough energy to bring its considerable melodic riches and surprising harmonic turns fully to life. And Walsh and cellist William Rounds gave a beautiful account of the duet movement.” - Allan Kozinn

“The concert's centerpiece was Mozart's D minor Piano Concerto, K. 466, with guest soloist Diane Walsh . . . . [Maestro Kevin] Rhodes and his colleagues set the scene with Mozart's seething syncopations, and Walsh surfed the sea of sound with a controlled legato of ideas, delivering themes with deliberate elegance. She employed Beethoven's thorny, trill-laden cadenza for the first movement to superb effect. Rhodes launched the B-flat Romance at a patient, pillowy tempo over which Walsh draped the forthright theme with simple warmth. With barely a breath, she dashed forward into the rondo finale, and earned a standing ovation from the thrilled audience.” - Clifton Noble Jr.

“The soloist was Portland resident Diane Walsh who played with surefire control of dynamics and technical command. The best part of the performance occurred during the 2nd movement when the orchestra stopped playing and a beautiful duet ensued with a solo cello ravishingly played by [William Rounds] and Ms. Walsh doing the honors. . . . The concerto itself calls for a virtuoso pianist (which Ms. Walsh is) and contains some lovely musical ideas. . . .” - Morton Gold

“She began with Beethoven’s Sonata No. 24 in F-sharp major (Op. 78). Walsh used the church’s relatively intimate proportions and comfortable acoustics to fine effect, giving a relaxed but precise performance in which textures were admirably transparent and dynamics were carefully nuanced. In Chopin’s Ballade No. 3 in A-flat major (Op. 47) Walsh gradually loosened the reins as the work unfolded, and by its final pages, its underlying passions were entirely clear. She was at her best, though, in Debussy’s “Images, Book I,” a set of three pieces in which suppleness and nuance are crucial. In “Reflets dans l’eau,” Walsh produced Debussy’s harmonically nebulous washes of sound and gentle, pastel tone colors with a deftness and flexibility that yielded a clear vision of the water that the composer hoped to capture. “Mouvement” is an Impressionistic perpetual motion piece, in which Walsh met the challenge of suggesting energy and drive, without sacrificing the soft edges of Debussy’s style. ” - Allan Kozinn