The Philadelphia Orchestra

"Rodriguez, playing the Schumann Piano Concerto, proved a poetic interpreter willing to extend and reshape some of the melodies. He found much of the inner glow of the music and expressed it in fluent playing that matched his mercurial temperament."
--Daniel Webster --The Philadelphia Inquirer

The Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra

"This was Rodriguez's Paganini Rhapsody, make no mistake about it: deliciously lyrical, taut in the classical sense, but high strung in the romantic. The audience fell for the gifted young pianist and called him back to the stage time after time."
--Charles Staff --The Indianapolis Star

The Ravenna Festival-Ravenna, Italy

"The pianist Santiago Rodriguez conquered an affectionate audience...Petrouska was sparkling and limpid and the intrinsic difficulties of the work were overcome with naturalness and an impressively secure technique..."
--Annalisa Gardella --The Corriere di Ravenna

The Syracuse Symphony Orchestra

"Rodriguez, with technique to spare, easily maneuvered his way through Khachaturian's challenging passage work, bringing out even the most complex sections cleanly and confidently"
--David Abrahms --The Syracuse Post-Standard

PCA Great Performances

"...the piano sonata (Rachmaninov Piano Sonata #2 in B flat minor, op. 36) played by Santiago Rodriguez makes it sound like child's play, and there's no symphony orchestra to cover you...it is hard to think of any piano piece which is more difficult and Rodriguez not only conquered the piece effortlessly but made music of it...it was a glorious accomplishment!"
--Christopher Hyde --Portland Press Herald

The Fairfax Symphony Orchestra

"the evening's most dazzling moments came from piano soloist Santiago Rodriguez, a world-class musician, made the Rachmaninov (Piano Concerto No. 3) seem deceptively easy...he was electrifying in the long, elaborate first-movement cadenza, and he brought great vitality to the climactic dialogues with the orchestra in the last movement..."
--Joseph McLellan --The Washington Post

The Harrisburg Symphony Orchestra

"The most deeply moving moments of the program came in the middle when pianist Santiago Rodriguez joined the orchestra in a breathtaking performance of Rachmaninov's Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini. Perched on the edge of his bench, Rodriguez played with great intensity and emotion. Just watching his hands race across the keyboard was mesmerizing, while his delicate solo playing was equally captivating."
--Sandy Cullen --The Patriot News

The Delaware Symphony Orchestra

"A Rachmaninov specialist, Rodriguez produced a brilliant reading of that composer's First Piano Concerto.. Commenting expansively on Rachmaninov's challenging musical arguments, he performed the music straight up...no tricks; his playing was about power."
--Tom Butler --The News Journals

The Long Beach Symphony Orchestra

"The audience leapt to its feet in adulation as the last notes of Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto #2 faded away. Pianist Santiago Rodriguez gave a truly phenomenal performance; playing with power and ease, he demonstrated his love and passion for Rachmaninov.
--Sander Roscoe Wolff --Long Beach Gazettes

The Toledo Symphony Orchestra

"When the program moved to Prokofiev's Piano Concerto #3 a Promethean figure arrived in the form of virtuoso pianist Santiago Rodriguez. Tall, handsome and exuding grace, Rodriguez charmed from the moment he appeared on stage. At the piano, grace became electricity. Every note received its own particular attention. This care translated into constant, unbroken lyricism, as well as melodic and rhythmic direction. The audience knew it had received a special gift and gave Rodriguez a standing ovation. He deserved roses and more."
--Stephen Cornelius --The Blade o Toledo, OHs

"Rachmaninov is Rodriguez' specialty, and he stands among the few pianists with the reserve strength, stamina, drop-dead technique and instincts to play an all-Rachmaninov program convincingly."
--Mike Greenberg --San Antonio Express-Newss

"He combines the technique of a virtuoso with the poetic sensibility and organizational clarity of Dinu Lipatti or Murray Perahia, even in such show-off pieces as the Rachmaninov Preludes and Scriabin' Fourth Sonata."
--Peter G. Davis --New York Magazines

"He is not simply a great pianist: He is one of the few that I would want to hear playing the standard repertoire war-horses. ..Rodriguez has lots of ideas about how the pieces should go and delivers them with bracing, brilliant technique and refreshing brisk tempos. ...Rodriguez was born to play Rachmaninov, but not because he confirms your ideas on how the ever-popular Russian romantic should sound. He has the technical ability and coloristic sense to make big musical statements, but always uses them to clarify the content rather than to create an effect for its own sake." --David Patrick Stearns --Arts & Entertainments

"Mr. Rodriguez reminded us from the start that Rachmaninov possessed a compelling musical imagination. ...Mr. Rodriguez, who is a phenomenal pianist, evidently believes that Rachmaninov's inner intricacies are worth our attention. Every figure was exploited, not treated as mood-inducing background hum."
--Bernard Holland --The New York Timess

"Rodriguez has all the technique any pianist can possibly accommodate, all the endurance, all the versatility. The extra things are hard to define: warmth, inwardness, directness of communication, imagination, magnetism - all over and above the basics. ...He can play Mozart...like an angel in full possession of his powers. He does not strive to be angelic; his sense of fitness, of simplicity, of clarity, of radiant sun and fleeting shadows, just make him that way. He can play Brahms' Variations on a Theme of Paganini, both books, like a demon in full control of his powers. His abandon, his accuracy, his power are diabolical. Nothing gets out of hand, the musicality is sustained and constant. When he wants variety in a repetition, he does more than just play softer the second time; he divines new shades and colors in the repeat. It was a staggering combination of musical insight and bravura extroversion."
--Albert Goldberg --The Los Angeles Timess

"Santiago Rodriguez is one of the finest pianists on the international scene. In an age in which classicism is revered, this Cuban-born pianist remains a fervent Romantic, spellbinding the audience with his warmth and Promethean fire. Rodriguez is certainly a pianist always worth hearing."
--Bob Waters --The Washington Posts

"Spanish blood is no guarantee of expertise in Spanish or Latin-American repertory...but Rodriguez has fingers, coloristic imagination and a sonority perfectly suited to this music. ...Expertise in Spanish romanticism should translate effectively to the Russian romanticism - and Rodriguez did not disappoint in this regard. ...The pianist's beautifully organized reading of the composer's "Corelli Variations" was as affecting emotionally as it was dazzlingly fluid and graceful."
--Stephen Wigler --The Baltimore Suns

"The audience response to his elegant and eloquent traversal of the Grieg Piano Concerto underscored the fact that Rodriguez knows how to get across the romantic heart of this music, and how to communicate with his listeners."
--Melinda Bargreen --The Seattle Timess