„Then, the shock: the young pianist Natalia Ehwald enters the hitherto disturbingly non-committal place, and puts a simply breathteaking interpretation of Schumann’s Kreisleriana into the pittoresquely dere-lict Sophien-hall. It is incredible how this woman labours for every shade of tone. (…) In this way, we experience Schumann’s cycle as an interpretation created from sweat and an inner blaze, which nevertheless is played in a disarmingly natural and straightforward manner.“ – Der Tagesspiegel
„Natalia Ehwald’s playing has, it can be said, an almost religious quality: never mannered but arising from the deepest, most honest sensibility. The harmlessly burbling Sonata (G-Major D 894) from Schubert’s middle-creative period seems to burst under her monumental approach. Particularly Ehwald’s take on the contrasts in dynamics, though intended by Schubert, is extreme. Here even a little piece like this can be the stage for existencial struggle.“ – Der Tagesspiegel
„Clara Schumann’s piano concerto […] was the seldomly-heard cherry on the cake of this evening’s program, because Natalia Ehwald at the piano found the right mixture of romantic passion (in the wild first movement and classicist soberness (during the andante). She added a fascinating technique to this many-layered interpretation: the way she uncovered structures even in the thickest melee of the final movement was real art.“ – Freie Presse
„In singing, the term “mezza voce” describes the art of articulating melodic lines evenly and expressively in reduced dynamics. This term, transferred to the piano, sprang to my mind when I encountered Natalia Ehwald’s interpretations. Her playing is – without being unable to portray dramatic or bizarre expressions – of a characteristic discretion, calmly internalised and virtually fundamentally lyric, a pleasant contrast to the highly virtuosic, yet emotionless, rat races of many young interpretors. I do not intend to conjure up gender stereotypes here, but to me Natalia Ehwald’s approach to Schumann and Schubert – devotedly sensitive, touching dreamlike wonder – seems to be endearingly feminine, and is yet (or rather: therefore) capable, as a first among equals, to shape the final Polonaise by Clara Schumann, employing stimulating rubati with effortless ease, into a buoyant and elegant ensemble performance.“ – Gerald Felber, Deutschlandradio Kultur
„In her perfect recital of Johann Sebastian Bach’s B-Major Partita, Natalia Ehwald, who was born in 1983 in Jena, showed the influence of her professor Evgeni Koriolov in Hamburg. Just like the Russian, who counts among the most important Bach interpreters of our time, Natialia Ehwald laid out “her” Bach in a wonderfully transparent and pure manner. The two completely equal hands moved apparently weightlessly over the keys, every short, but vivid touch sounded as if it came directly from a cembalo and not from a grand piano. After this incredible Bach, the young pianist proved that she also feels at home in the Romantic period. Her interpretation of the piano cycle Kreilseriana Opus 16 by Robert Schumann was shaped by playfulness and virtuosity. Her hands flew over the keys like a hurricane and brought the droll conductor that E.T.A Hoffmann created to musical life. This young woman is one to watch. “ – Harburger Nachrichten
„[…] The Partita in B-Major by Johann Sebastian Bach was the moment of truth where the tangibility of voice-leading in the polyphone web is concerned. When the listeners are still able to follow the quick, virtu-osically played movements with such clarity, that means the pianist must be doing something right. The A-Major Sonata by Franz Schubert showed this again, as well as a romantic tonality in the andante and even more so in the dialogue between explosiveness and lightness in the allegretto. The forest scenes from op.82 by Robert Schumann were another chance for individualisation, which one can see as cha-racter pieces in musical imagery as a contrast. The perfected art for a pianist, however, is the work of Johannes Brahms, and this especially looking back at the famous interpretation by famous pianists in the past. Thus, the piano piece from op.76 was the highlight of the evening for Natalia Ehwald and for the audience. On one hand, the intermezzi, which showed the cautious melancholia that is so typical for this composer, in keeping with his motto “free, but lonely”. On the other hand, the caprices, with their virtuousically exuberant tonality. This, of course, was well worth an encore: Schu-mann’s “Widmung”, played captivatingly, as well as a piece from the forest scenes completed the evening.“ – Thüringische Landeszeitung
„The 22-years-old counts among this year’s award-carriers of the Hans und Eugenia Jüting Foundation in Stendal and has been won prizes both nationally and internationally. […] The pianist interpreted the C-Major Sonata KV 330 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart with classical precision and brilliance. […] At this point, she already received heartfelt applause for her execution. With Schumann’s compositions for piano, this was further intensified – here, the pianist was clearly in her element. With virtuosity and with an understanding of the emotional depth of piano music, she was able to demonstrate her musical talent, and her skill as a pianist convincingly. […] Schumann’s Abegg-Variations. With youthful forcefulness, Natalia Ehwald evocated a brimming fury in runs, in sequences of syncopes, until the finale ended in musical beauty and variety. […] The Kreisleri-ana. Here, the young pianist really shone and lived up to her award in the Schumann Competition in Zwickau and proved worthy of the scho-larship in every way. “ – Volksstimme