Oberon's Glade

Category: Music

  • Bychkov-Batiashvili-Capuçon @ The NY Phil

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    Thursday October 22nd, 2015 – A Brahms-centric program at The New York Philharmonic this evening, with two of the Master’s most beloved works and an impressive contemporary work inspired by his music.

    Detlev Glanert’s Brahms-Fantasie is one of the most appealing pieces of ‘new’ music I have experienced in the current century. So much ‘classical’ music being written today is expertly crafted and impressive in a cerebral way, but little of it reaches the heart or soul. In this 12-minute, overtly Brahmsian homage, Mr. Detlev eschews the current trend for over-reliance on percussion for achieving effects, and he is unafraid of melody.

    After a dynamic opening statement, the music simmers down to a misterioso passage followed by a delicate section of single notes, quietly played. A dolorous theme develops, with a slow buildup to an episode of rhythmic grandeur. Following some rather gnarly phrases, a minor-key dance eventually gives way to a big turmoil of voices before settling back into simmering mystery. Near the end, a brass chorale takes on a gloomy aspect. Glanert shows his skill at creating varying moods, and the Philharmonic players made the most of the melodic opportunities afforded them, with Maestro Bychkov in sure and steady command.

    Next up was the Brahms “Double” concerto. “I have had the amusing idea of writing a concerto for violin and cello …If it is at all successful, it might give us some fun,” wrote Johannes Brahms to Clara Schumann in the summer of 1887.

    The two soloists – particular favorites of mine: violinist Lisa Batiashvili and cellist Gautier Capuçon – were warmly welcomed when they appeared onstage. As these two artists are as attractive to the eye as to the ear, we were in for a thoroughly absorbing experience. Mr. Capuçon’s soulful playing blends ideally with the silken style of Ms. Batiashvili, and as theme after theme was summoned up by these remarkable players – their voices echoing or entwining – the audience was drawn deeply into the music.

    The central andante was especially congenial this evening, with its beautiful opening melody which is played by the soloists and the strings, enhanced by the orchestra’s solo flute, bassoon, and clarinet. In the concluding movement, Batiashvili and Capuçon were at their most alluring as they introduced the familiar mellifluous second theme. The concerto then sailed on to its inspired finale; the audience erupted in hearty applause the moment the final note had sounded, and an enthusiastic ovation called the soloists and Maestro back twice. 

    Following the interval, we had the Brahms 1st symphony. The composer declared that this symphony, from sketches to finishing touches, took 21 years – from 1855 to 1876 – to complete.

    Here we could bask in Maestro Bychkov’s ideal pacing and his obvious affection for the music; he is a conductor who favors depth over theatricality. And so for 40 minutes we were immersed in this symphony with its wealth of themes and its somewhat Beethovian air. The inner movements were particularly impressive today: the wistful Andante sostenuto with its lovely duet for solo violin and horn, and the charming Allegretto. In the finale (and all evening, actually), Philip Myers and the Philharmonic horns produced wonderfully plush, resonant sound. And it is here that Brahms makes his most obvious salute to Beethoven with a majestic theme, first heard in the strings, that evokes the “Ode to Joy” from Beethoven’s 9th.

    Tonight’s Program:

    DETLEV GLANERT: Brahms-Fantasie
    BRAHMS: Concerto for Violin and Cello A minor op. 102 (Double Concerto)
    BRAHMS: Symphony No. 1 in C minor, Op.68

  • 2015-2016 Season Opens at CMS

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    Above: cellist Nicholas Canellakis

    Sunday October 18th, 2015 – Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center opening their new season at Alice Tully Hall with a sold-out concert that played to a crowd of music lovers as attentive as they were appreciative.

    As is their wont, Chamber Music Society put together an impressive ensemble of musicians this evening; it was especially gratifying to hear cellist Nicholas Canellakis again after he had bowled me over with his playing of Leon Kirchner’s Music for Cello and Orchestra with the American Symphony Orchestra this past April. Mr. Canellakis played in all three works this evening – a triple treat.

    Over the course of the evening, three pianists took turns at the Steinway. After greeting the audience  tonight in her capacity as co-artistic director of the Society, Wu Han took her place at the keyboard and dazzled us yet again with her subtle, evocative artistry. She was joined for the opening Haydn trio by Ani Kavafian – in her 44th year (!) of participating in the Society’s concerts and playing with her characteristic super-fine style – and Mr. Canellakis, whose deep-burgundy cello resonance was amply pleasing.

    The blended timbres of these three ‘voices’ and the gracious communicative rapport they established immediately drew the audience into the music, setting the tone for the whole evening. Their deeply-felt playing of the central Andante gave way to the foot-tapping dance rhythm of the final Allegro, which they set forth with joyous vigor.

    The Mendelssohn D-major sextet sounded remarkably fresh this evening in a glowing performance of such dazzling clarity that the audience could barely suppress their delight, erupting in a gale of applause the moment the final chord was released. The players basked in a lively ovation, deservedly called out for a second bow.

    And what players! The velvety bass of Joseph Conyers set the groundwork for the piece, with Mr. Canellakis and violists Paul Neubauer and Matthew Lipman summoning up some exceptionally tender harmonies in the Adagio, where Chad Hoopes interjected some sweet violin solo moments. In his first concert with CMS, pianist Michael Brown’s rippling enticements and poised lyricism in the earlier movements gave way to thrilling virtuosity in the concluding Allegro vivace.

    This final movement, taken at an exhilaratingly speedy pace, found all the players reveling in the dancing spirit of the work. A sudden change of pace and mood brought out some of Mr. Brown’s most fabulous playing, and then the work sailed on to its invigorating end. The audience’s spontaneous reaction and their embrace of the players during the ensuing applause was both joyous and heartfelt.

    A tough act to follow, indeed; yet as pianist Anne-Marie McDermott led her colleagues out for the concluding Schumann, I felt certain we were in for yet another revelatory experience. And I was right.

    Here we could more extensively savour Mr. Lipman’s viola skills: this young musician, who made an impromptu CMS debut last season when he stepped in for another artist, displayed handsome tone and a smile that seemed to signal his delight in playing such great music for such an engaged audience. Ms. Kavafian, unspooling silken melodies, was amiably seconded by Mr. Hoopes, whilst Nicholas Canellakis polished off his evening with engaging, expressive playing. Ms. McDermott’s luxuriantly dexterous playing fell ever-so-pleasingly on the ear.

    In the first movement, cellist and violist participate in rise-and-fall scale motif, Mr. Lipman seeming to finish Mr. Canellakis’s sentences.The second movement begins hesitantly; the viola becomes prominent, and Ms. Kavafian plays high and sweet. A rising scale theme is passed from voice to voice. In the concluding movement, we are dancing again; but there’s a sudden volte-face, a slowdown where Ms. McDermott’s piano rumbles in some lower range scalework before the engines are revved up again and the piece dances on to the end.

    Another warm ovation, another double curtain call; and then out into the first chill of early Autumn.

    The Repertory:

    The Participating Artists:

     

     

  • Mariana Paunova

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    The Bulgarian mezzo-soprano Mariana Paunova (above) made her operatic debut in 1977, as Pauline in PIQUE-DAME at the Spoleto Festival in Charleston, South Carolina. I saw her as Isaura in a concert performance of Rossini’s TANCREDI at Carnegie Hall in 1978, and she sang at the Met in 1979, as Olga in EUGENE ONEGIN.

    In 1983 I heard her as Laura in a broadcast of LA GIOCONDA from San Francisco and was very much taken with her darkish, plushy sound. In that same year, she recorded Dukas’ ARIANE ET BARBE-BLEUE for Erato, conducted by Armin Jordan.

    Paunova’s career continued apace in the US, Canada, Mexico, and Europe; she sang the role of La Comandante in Riccardo Zandonai’s I CAVALIERI DI EKEBU at Alice Tully Hall in 2000.

    Mariana Paunova taught at the Manhattan School of Music until her untimely death in 2002.

    GIOCONDA – Act II exc – M Paunova – Slatinaru – Bonisolli – Manuguerra – San F 1983

  • Camellia Johnson Has Passed Away

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    News of the death of Camellia Johnson (above) eerily came on a day I had just been listening to her voice. In the course of my Summer project of transferring some of the rare items in my cassette collection to MP3, I had just come across a tape of parts of the Verdi REQUIEM in which Ms. Johnson is the soprano soloist. 

    The broadcast of this REQUIEM was something I came upon quite by chance; as the announcer was introducing the performance, I found myself with only one blank side of one tape to hand. I slipped it into the deck and decided to concentrate on recording excerpts in which the two women are prominent, Florence Quivar being a particular favorite of mine. Listen to what I preserved here:

    Verdi REQUIEM – excerpts – Baltimore 1994 – C Johnson Quivar Heppner G Relyea – Zinman

    In 1995, I had the good fortune to hear Camellia Johnson live at two different, wonderful venues. She sang with the Philharmonia Virtuosi at the Met Museum, and she gave a recital at Alice Tully Hall accompanied by Neal Goren. I remember being blown away by both the velvety warmth of her tone and her gift for finding a direct communicative channel to the audience. On both evenings she programmed Wagner’s Wesendonck lieder; at the Met concert, she gave a stunning performance of “To This We’ve Come” from Menotti’s THE CONSUL whilst with Mr. Goren she sang a lushly resonant “Du bist der lenz” from DIE WALKURE.  

    Camellia Johnson sang at The Met from 1985 thru 1994, debuting there as Lily in PORGY AND BESS. Her most frequent Met role was the Priestess in AIDA; she also scored a personal success with her sumptuous and emotionally charged singing of Madelon’s aria in ANDREA CHENIER.

  • CMS: Summer Evenings I

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    Above: violinist Erin Keefe, photographed by Lisa-Marie Mazzucco

    Wednesday July 15th, 2015 – Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center are presenting their inaugural Summer Series: three concerts at Alice Tully Hall. The scheduled programs feature works by the greatest composers played by some of the finest musicians of our time: a surefire recipe for success.

    Tonight’s opening concert was sold out, with music lovers outside Tully Hall pleading with anyone who might have a spare ticket. Onstage, as the house lights dimmed, the Society’s co-artistic director Wu Han welcomed us with her usual warmth and enthusiasm, ending her speech by wishing us all “…happy summer fishing…I hope you catch some trout!” – a reference to the program’s closing work, Schubert’s beloved “Trout” quintet.

    Erin Keefe and Juho Pohjonen then appeared for Mozart’s B-flat major violin sonata, K. 378. Ms. Keefe’s gown, in rich shades of tourquoise and purple, evoked Klimt: it appeared someone had thrown handfuls of gold dust onto the frock, giving it a shimmering sheen. Ms. Keefe plays as handsomely as she looks and – joined by Mr. Pohjonen, who was at the keyboard for all three works tonight – they set the evening on its way with their gracious rendering of the Mozart. 

    In the opening movement, Allegro moderato, the two players trade off cascading motifs. The heart of the sonata, the Andante sostenuto e cantabile, has a touching song-like quality which the violin introduces almost hesitatingly, the pianist seemingly completing each ‘sentence’. Later, the violin takes up a more sustained theme, the opening bars of which seem to have been drawn from the old Jesuit hymn ‘Schönster Herr Jesu’; we used to sing this tune in church under the title ‘Fairest Lord Jesus’, and hearing it again this evening gave the sonata a personal appeal.

    The concluding Rondo: Allegro had a joyous lilt and the players showed especial affinity for the sprightly, deftly driven final section. They linger momentarily as if thinking of going off on a different tangent, but instead they resume the original trajectory and there’s a charming rush to the finish line.

    Tonight’s performance of Beethoven’s piano trio in E-flat major (Op. 70, #2) kept me enthralled, both by the intrinsic beauty of the music itself and by the exquisite details brought forth by the three players: Mr. Pohjonen (piano), Paul Huang (violin) and Jakob Koranyi (cello).

    Juho Pohjonen is a poet of the keyboard; he seems both a wonderfully attentive colleague and a player whose musicality reaches us from his own personal dreamworld. Treading this line between keen awareness and a deep spirituality, this enigmatic pianist is always fascinating to encounter. Violinist Paul Huang, the youthful-looking but already superbly accomplished current holder of a prestigious Lincoln Center Career Grant, proved his capacity for keeping an audience of serious music aficionados under his spell at his Morgan Library recital earlier this year. Depth of expressiveness and poignant lustre of tone have set cellist Jakob Koranyi among the most admirable musicians of the day; his mastery of dynamic control, so often encountered in the Beethoven trio tonight, is a particular joy.

    Dressed in white dinner jackets, the three young men reveled in the slow melodic unfolding of the Poco sostenuto in the opening movement of the trio which had begun with an almost melancholy phrase from the solo cello which is taken up by the violin then the piano in turn. Beethoven’s heritage, as successor to Mozart and Haydn, illuminates the second movement; then the third seems to herald Mendelssohn with its lyricism and grace. In the Finale: Allegro, the three players produced a wealth of nuanced detail which was wonderfully fresh and luminous, and never for a moment seemed fussy or merely ornate. 

    In their revelatory performance, Messrs. Pohjonen, Huang, and Koranyi were truly inspiring; their generous playing and impressive artistry set this Beethoven firmly in the top echelon of memorable musical experiences of recent seasons.

    Schubert’s “Trout” quintet was sumptuously played by Ms. Keefe with Roberto Diaz (viola), Mr. Koranyi (cello), Timothy Cobb (double bass) and the luxuriant pianism of Mr. Pohjonen. Making their mark in the ensemble, Mr. Diaz’s caramel richness of tone and Mr. Cobb’s genial tread (and his amiable seizing of every melodic moment) meshed with Mr. Keefe’s arching lyricism, Mr. Koranyi’s striking opulence of expression, and the combination of delicacy and power in Mr. Pohjonen’s playing, to hold the audience in a state of receptive eagerness.

    The inclusion of a variations movement, where Schubert’s popular song “Die forelle” is heard in a variety of rhythms and textures, was part of the composer’s agreement with Herr Paumgartner, the wealthy amateur cellist who commissioned the quintet. Schubert then has the last word; after a false ending which – as usual – fooled the audience into premature applause, the composer tacks on an Allegro giusto which is both short and deliciously sweet.

    The Society’s remaining two Summer Series performances (July 19th and 22nd) are reportedly nearly sold out, but it’s worth a try by going on-line here, or by calling the Alice Tully box office (212-875-5788), or by going there in person. 

    The Repertory:

    The Participating Artists:

  • Hadelich/Honeck @ The NY Philharmonic

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    Above: violinist Augustin Hadelich

    Thursday May 28th, 2015 – Earlier this season, Dmitry and I heard Augustin Hadelich give a memorable performance of the Samuel Barber’s violin concerto at Carnegie Hall. I was keen to hear the violinist again, and tonight the opportunity came with his appearance at Avery Fisher Hall with The New York Philharmonic playing Mozart’s “Turkish” concerto. Manfred Honeck was on the podium, opening the evening with the FLEDERMAUS overture; following the interval, we had Brahms’ 4th symphony.

    The tuneful FLEDERMAUS overture was given a brisk, opulent rendition by the Philharmonic; Maestro Honeck gave this infectious music a vibrant sway, and Liang Wang’s oboe solo was a highlight. Toe-tapping and nodding in three-quarter time seized the audience, an inevitability whenever this overture is played.

    Mozart’s 5th violin concerto (K. 219) is popularly referred to as “the Turkish” though there’s little feeling of the exotic in the music until near the end of the final movement. Mr. Hadelich, who I feels ranks very high among today’s top violinists for sheer beauty of tone, made his mark immediately when the opening Allegro aperto movement is surprisingly interrupted for a radiant adagio theme for the soloist. In the slow movement – the Adagio proper – the violinist was at his most persuasively lyrical, his warmth of tone and innate sense of the phrasing giving enormous pleasure. The final movement seems pretty much a standard rondo until Mozart suddenly tosses in a sustained passage of witty “Turkish” music that he used so charmingly in The Abduction from the Seraglio. After this diversion, a minuet sweeps graciously by and the concerto ends gently.

    There’s a cadenza near the end of each of the concerto’s three movements, and as there are no ‘official’ versions for these miniature showpieces, Mr. Hadelich composed his own and they ideally showcased both his dulcet tone and his nimble technique.

    A warm reception from the audience drew an encore from the violinist: a staggeringly virtuosic Paganini piece with slithering mile-a-minute scale passages expertly set forth by Mr. Hadelich. The audience listened in awestruck silence to this coloratura display, then erupted in cheers; the soloist was called out twice to a standing ovation, which he so thoroughly merited. 

    Following the interval, Maestro Honeck and the orchestra treated us to a sonorous Brahms 4th. This symphony, full of inspiring melodies, sounded particularly plush tonight. The composer himself conducted the 1885 premiere of this, his last symphony, and since then it has stood among the great musical masterworks of all time…and it certainly seemed so tonight. Though sometimes described as ‘tragic’, the fourth symphony prompted Clara Schumann to write to Brahms with this summation: “It is as though one lay in Springtime among the blossoming flowers, and joy and sorrow filled one’s soul in turn.” That is exactly how I felt listening to it this evening.

  • Gerstein/Mälkki @ The NY Philharmonic

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    Above: pianist Kirill Gerstein, photographed by Marco Borggreve

    Saturday May 21st, 2015 – Pianist Kirill Gerstein returned to The New York Philharmonic for a series of concerts featuring his playing of the Brahms Piano Concerto No. 1. Conducted by Susanna Mälkki, the other programmed works were Brahms’s Variations on a Theme by Haydn and Jonathan Harvey’s Tranquil Abiding.

    The title Variations on a Theme by Haydn has stuck, even after modern scholarship has established that the theme was actually not by Haydn; instead it may have been drawn from an old pilgrim hymn known as “Chorale Sti. Antonii.”

    Brahms’s eight variations are well-contrasted in tempo and character; the music is perfectly pleasing and was of course beautifully played by The Philharmonic tonight. There is, however, little of emotional value here; Ms. Mälkki’s rather formal, almost military style of conducting suited the music well.

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    Above: conductor Susanna Mälkki

    The conductor seemed far more distinctive in Tranquil Abiding, composed by Jonathan Harvey in 1998. In this imaginative, transcendent work which begins almost imperceptibly, the composer evokes the act of breathing with a continuous inhale/exhale motif developed thru sustained crescendos and decrescendos. The deep reverberations of the gong have a spiritual resonance, whilst fragmented warblings from the wind players refer to the natural world. After a turbulent passage, with the winds jabbering, the music settles back into calm; the high violins soar in ethereal radiance before fading to nothingness. This mystical work held the audience enthralled, and the conductor and players seemed deeply invested in its austere beauty.

    After the interval, Kirill Gerstein, Ms. Mälkki, and the Philharmonic gave a grand performance of the Brahms Piano Concerto #1. Right from the start, the conductor’s vividly dramatic view of the work evinced itself in glorious swirls of sound. The pianist, passionate and musically authoritative, wove the keyboard themes gleamingly into the orchestral tapestry; in the last of the first movement’s cadenzas, Mr. Gerstein’s playing had a particularly resonant appeal. The calm of the Adagio found the pianist at his most poetic; the movement ends with a feeling of deep serenity. But then immediately we are plunged into the boisterous finale with its gypsy colourings, the pianist tossing off brilliant passages with flair. The Philharmonic horns were having a fine night and added much to the enjoyment of the concerto.

  • All-Brahms @ Chamber Music Society

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    Above: violinist Cho-Liang Lin

    Friday April 24th, 2015 – With their customary flair for matching great music with great musicians, Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center put together an inviting all-Brahms programme and gathered a world-class ensemble to perform it. It would be fair to say this concert was a highlight of the season to date, but then that seems to be true of each of the Society’s offerings.

    Cho-Liang Lin has always been a particular favorite of mine; he boasts a wonderful discography, with his Stravinsky/Prokofiev disc one I especially like. Tonight he joined pianist Wu Qian for the opening Brahms work: the Violin Sonata in A major Op. 100.  The piece opens with brief, hesitant violin interjections before sailing forth into melody. The second movement – an unusual setting in which Brahms seems to combine an andante and a scherzo (and it works!) – opens with a theme of tenderness and longing, so expressively played by Lin and Qian. Later, when more animated passages arise, their clarity of articulation was most welcome. The serene melody recurs, with major/minor shifts giving an affecting quality. A plucky little dance makes for a sprightly interlude before returning to the andante where the violin now lingers on high. An unexpected little coda gives the movement a brisk finish.

    The sonata’s final movement opens with a poignant theme, lovingly ‘voiced’ by Mr. Lin while Ms. Qian’s piano ripples gently. The music becomes more animated – each player alternately carries the melody by turns – but retains its lyrical heart and eschews virtuosity in favor of something more heartfelt. A friend of the composer said: “The whole sonata is one caress,” and that’s how it seemed this evening in such a beautifully dovetailed rendering from our two artists.

    The Trio in C minor for Piano, Violin, and Cello dates from the same year as the sonata, and follows it immediately in the composer’s catalog of works. Both pieces were written while Brahms was on vacation (a ‘working vacation’, obviously) at Lake Thun, Switzerland; he is thought to have been inspired by the scenery, which is understandable: 

    Lake thun
    The Piano Trio No. 3 was a favorite of Brahms’ dear friend Clara Schumann; she is said to have turned pages for Brahms when he played the work with his two friends – the cellist Robert Hausmann and violinist Joseph Joachim.
     
    This evening’s performance marked the Chamber Music Society debut of the Sitkovetsky Trio. Although  violinist Alexander Sitkovetsky has appeared with the Society before, tonight marked his first performance there with his established chamber music colleagues Richard Harwood (cello) and Wu Qian (piano). Their playing of the C-minor trio drew a well-deserved, vociferous reception from the Tully crowd.
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    Above: The Sitkovetsky Trio
     
    In the Trio’s opening Allegro energico the three musicians got off to a grand start, the melodies pouring generously from the Brahmsian font. The blend of violin and cello was particularly enriching whilst at the Steinway, Wu Qian brought the same lyrical glow to the music that had made her performance in the sonata so impressive. A unison passage for violin and cello had a richly burnished quality, and all three players displayed both technical precision and real passion for the music.
     
    The charming and subtle second movement – Presto non assai – finds the violin and cello plucking delicately; but beneath the lightness of touch there’s an inescapable quality of sadness. Then a feeling of gentle nostalgia develops in the Andante grazioso that follows, and the strings and piano trade expressive passages. This leads directly into the dynamic opening of the Allegro molto in which reflective phrases mingle with more extroverted ones; the trio concludes with in a rockingly positive mood.
     
    After the interval, we jumped back 20+ years in Brahms’ compositional career for the Sextet #2 in G Major (Opus 36); Mssrs Sitkovetsky and Harwood were joined by Cho-Liang Lin, violists Paul Neubauer and Richard O’Neill, and – fresh from his marvelous Carnegie Hall concerto debut – cellist Nicholas Canellakis. As the musicians settled in and did a bit of tuning, my level of anticipation shot up: we were in for something special.  

    When Brahms started work on his second sextet, it seems he was in a highly emotional state, having been secretly engaged to a young singer named Agathe von Siebold. Realizing that marriage was not for him, the composer sent her a brusque message terminating the engagement. But he managed to preserve the memory of his brief love in this second Sextet: the letters of Agathe’s name ‘spell’ a theme in the work’s first movement; he later wrote: “Here is where I tore myself free from my last love.”

    Paul Neubauer launched the performance with a gently rocking two-note motif in continuous repetition; this motif is later passed from one player to another, giving a continuity to the music. Outstanding beauty of tone from Nicholas Canellakis and plenty of viola magic from both Mr. Neubauer and the passionate Richard O’Neill as the melodies make the rounds of the ensemble, passing from artist to artist.

    The scherzo (rather restrained and thoughtful, actually) opens on high and features delicate plucking and curling drifts of melody. Halfway thru there’s a joyous dance which subsides into into rolling waves before its boisterous conclusion.

    Cho-Liang Lin’s playing had a searching quality in the opening of the Andante which wends its way at a stately pace thru rather doleful minor-key passages until there’s an unexpected lively outburst. Calm is restored, and now major and minor phrases alternate to lovely effect; Mr. Lin’s melodic arcs sailed sublimely over the finely-blended lower voices; the music becomes almost unbearably beautiful, leading to a peaceful coda. 

    In the final movement, a brief agitato introduction settles into a lilting flow with some lively interjections. The music cascades on: bold and sunny, its energy carries us forward with inescapable optimism. A perfect finale, and the Tully audience could scarcely wait til the bows were off the strings give the six superb players the standing ovation they so surely merited.

    The Repertory:

    The Participating Artists:

  • Huang/Schwizgebel @ The Morgan Library

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    Wednesday April 22nd, 2015 – Violinist Paul Huang and pianist Louis Schwizgebel (above) in a noontime recital at the Morgan Library, presented by Young Concert Artists in collaboration with the Morgan Library and Museum.

    Earlier this year I heard Paul Huang playing in a Young Concert Artists Composers Series concert at Merkin Hall. His artistic maturity seemed remarkable in one so young. Shortly after that concert, it was announced that Paul was one of five recipients of an Avery Fisher Career Grant.

    Swiss-Chinese pianist Louis Schwizgebel won the Geneva International Music Competition at the age of seventeen, and two years later, he won the Young Concert Artists International Auditions in New York. In 2012 he was awarded the Arthur Rubenstein Prize in Piano at the Juilliard School, and in 2013 he was announced as a BBC New Generation Artist.

    Franz Schubert’s Rondo brilliant in B Minor, D. 895 (Op. 70) opened the programme, with both the musicians looking dapper in black suits with red silk handkerchiefs in their breast pockets. Gilder Lehrman Hall at The Morgan is a wonderful venue for chamber music, with its comfortable, steeply-raked seating and its fine acoustic which gives the music real immediacy. Displaying ‘Olde World’ warmth of tone and depth of sensitivity, the Huang/Schwizgebel duo gave an exhilarating performance of this demanding Schubert showpiece.

    Thematically rich, with an upward-leaping signature motif, the Rondo (composed 1826) showed the two young musicians in a fine rapport, mining both the dramatic and the virtuosic passages with flair. Shifts of key and pacing were astutely mastered, and Mr. Huang’s technical command was impressive. Incidentally, the manuscript score of this work is housed at The Morgan.

    Arvo Pärt’s Fratres is well-known to Gotham’s ballet lovers since it was used by Christopher Wheeldon for his 2003 ballet LITURGY at New York City Ballet. After a twitchy, nervous passage for solo violin, the piano makes an emphatic entrance. Thereafter we are taken on a musical/spiritual journey that veers from urgency to pensiveness, rises to a passionate cry to heaven, and develops into a soulful hymn. A repeated, rising theme for the violin seems to depict souls ascending to heaven before the work reaches its ethereal finish. Mssrs. Huang and Schwizgebel gave an engrossing performance of this piece which is surely among Pärt’s finest and most memorable compositions.

    Cesar Franck’s Sonata for Violin and Piano in A Major is so poignantly familiar; right from the start we are drawn into its melodic soundscape. Louis Schwizgebel’s playing of the first solo piano passage radiated romantic tenderness, and the piano introduction to the second movement was superbly played. Paul Huang brought intense beauty to each theme that Franck so generously gives to the violin; the clarity and expressiveness of his playing was something uplifting to experience.

    Responding to very warm applause from the large audience, Paul and Louis offered a heartfelt rendition of Robert Schumann’s Träumerei as an encore, thoughtfully dedicating it to Susan Wadsworth, the director of Young Concert Artists, and to everyone involved in the organization. The recital celebrated a beautiful Spring day in high style; I felt so fortunate to have been there.

  • Great Performers: Lisa Batiashvili/Paul Lewis

    Lisa Batiashvili

    Monday March 30th, 2015 – Violinist Lisa Batiashvili (above) joined pianist Paul Lewis for this recital at Alice Tully Hall, the second event of our Great Performers at Lincoln Center subscription series.  Sonatas by Schubert and Beethoven book-ended the programme, with some delicious treats in between.

    Ms. Batiashvili, who is artist-in-residence for the current New York Philharmonic season, is a slender, elegant beauty gowned in rose-pink. From the opening measures of the Schubert ‘Duo’ in A-major, she and Mr. Lewis formed an ideal alliance: both players are masters of subtlety, the violinist with her shining clarity of tone, the pianist capable of great delicacy as well as a sense of gentle urgency. Throughout the sonata’s opening Allegro moderato, their mutual musicality yielded an uncommonly lovely experience, drawing the large audience into Schubert’s world.

    In the exuberant charm of the Scherzo which follows, the two players mixed virtuosity with fleeting passages of ‘sung’ melody; then came the Andantino, with its poignant theme and gracious motif of trills where the artists lingered in music’s expressive delights. The final Allegro vivace blends declamation and lilt, carrying us along with its waltzing buoyancy.

    As a sort of mega-encore, Ms. Batiashvili and Mr. Lewis offered a vibrant performance of Schubert’s Rondo in B minor (“Rondo brillant”) which opens regally and proceeds to a blend of jaunty upward leaps, inviting melodies, and coloratura flights of fancy.

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    Paul Lewis (above, in a Pia Johnson photo)

    Following the interval, each artist took a solo turn. Mr. Lewis’s rendering of the Busoni arrangement of Bach’s Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland was profoundly beautiful in its grace and simplicity. Ms. Batiashvili played Telemann’s Fantaisie No. 4 in D major, its classic three-movement (fast-slow-fast) structure compressed into a five-minute time span, a miniature solo-concerto which was handsomely played.

    The Beethoven sonata No. 10, which closed the evening, begins gently with shimmering trills; a simple two-note motif later in the first movement has a hypnotic quality, then back to a trill-filled conclusion before we move on to the achingly gorgeous, sustained melodies of the Adagio espressivo: here Ms. Batiashvili and Mr. Lewis were at their most ravishing. There’s no pause as the Adagio yields immediately to the brief, playful Scherzo with both players spinning the music onward. The fourth movement, Poco allegretto, seems calm at first but there’s underlying tension building: you can sense an impending flood of energy and surely enough it bursts forth. Both players were on a high here, yet cunningly the composer draws back into a lulling, rather sentimental passage. What then seems like a race to the finish gets momentarily sidetracked again – Beethoven is playing with us – before the last sprint.

    Superb music-making in a most congenial space: we left Ms. Batiashvili and Mr. Lewis basking in the warmth of the audience’s cheers and applause. 

    The Program: 

    Schubert: Violin Sonata in A major

    Schubert: Rondo in B minor (“Rondo brillant”)

    Bach (arr. Busoni): Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland, for piano

    Telemann: Fantaisie No. 4 in D major, for solo violin

    Beethoven: Violin Sonata No. 10 in G major