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Pianist Gábor Farkas at the Classical Bridge Festival

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Gabor Farkas in New York

Pianist Gábor Farkas performed at the Bruno Walter Auditorium in New York on July 29th, 2019. This event was part of the Classical Bridge Festival organized by New York Concert Artists & Associates.

Farkas’ program of Chopin and Liszt was enticing. It consisted of 4 Impromptus, a Mazurka (C sharp minor Op. 50 No. 3) and a Ballade (No. 1, G minor) by Chopin, followed by selections from Liszt’s Années de Pelèrinages.

Farkas has a long list of credentials and came on stage projecting relaxed confidence. His technical prowess was soon evident. His fast runs were so smooth that one could (hypothetically) balance a glass of wine on the back of his hands. He looked VERY good.

Chopin

I love Chopin and if you play Chopin well, I love you too! I wanted to be enchanted by Gábor Farkas, but somehow I wasn’t. Nowhere was this more evident than in Chopin’s painful yet ultimately triumphant Ballade No. 1 in G minor.

Farkas lost me in the opening bars due to a moment of unconvincing rubato, but regained his momentum and turned in a respectable performance with plenty of fireworks. When he finished, there was rowdy cheering.

While Farkas was agile and expressive, something felt “off” about this Ballade. I consulted the gentleman in the next seat. We agreed that it was a problem of authenticity. Farkas’ played with great competence, but the music did not seem to inhabit him.

Liszt

In contrast, Gábor Farkas was in his element with Liszt, excelling in low-end hammering power, octaves and huge climaxes. There are few more entertaining composers than Liszt for such drama.

Later, Farkas joked that the piano would no longer be in tune. Of course Liszt would have broken it… but I digress! Liszt is not at the top of my list (sic), but it was good… listening.

Conclusion

Gábor Farkas’ signature move at the piano is tilting his head back and staring into space as he plays. This communicates little. And that was my quibble with this otherwise impressively competent pianist when playing Chopin. His feelings were opaque.

The pianist is the conductor of the audience. We like him/her to lead us, particularly with a Romantic composer like Chopin. That’s not to say that we want the pianist to over-act at the keyboard. We can leave that to the adorable Lang Lang! But give us some cues, show us that you feel something.

There are subtle and not-so-subtle ways to project emotions to an audience. But you can’t just stare into space and expect us to know what you feel.

Violinist Magdalena Filipczak at the Anthoine Penthouse

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Magdalena Filipczak solo

On May 19th, 2019, violinist Magdalena Filipczak and pianist Jessica Xylina Osborne gave a recital at the Anthoine Penthouse in New York City. The program was an eclectic collection of 19th to mid-20th century works, with a sizeable Polish component.

Here are the works that were played.

Bacewicz: Polish Caprice for solo violin

This work was written by the Polish composer Grazyna Bacewicz, at one time a student of Nadia Boulanger. You can hear Grazyna herself play it. It is a brief, entertaining piece that opens in a reflective mood. It transitions to a fast dance, replete with challenges for the violinist.

Britten: Reveille

Magdalena’s interest in the music of Benjamin Britten dates back to years she spent in London, U.K. She likened this work to the violinist yawning as he gradually wakes up. Magdalena’s yawn was a muted portamento that repeats and evolves as the work progresses. Later we hear hints of a military trumpet. The work closes with sudden dissonance and a flourish. The reason for this was unclear to me. Did the violinist fall out of bed?

Wienawski: Polonaise in D major, Op. 4

Available on YouTube as Wieniawski Polonaise in D Major.

Magdalena Filipczak and Jessica Xylena Osborne

Previn: Song from Tango, Song and Dance

Magdalena played this sad, delicate work with grace. You can see Anne-Sophie Mutter play it at THE RECORDING OF TANGO, SONG AND DANCE.

Piazzola: Bordel from The History of Tango

I like Piazzola, but in this work the composer had pianist Jessica tapping rhythmically on the piano, which broke the spell.

Ravel: Blues (Violin Sonata No. 2, second movement)

This work was difficult to absorb on first hearing. There are echoes of Ravel’s Left Hand Piano Concerto mid-way through, but I did not feel that Blues was of comparable stature.

Szymanowski: Peasant Dance from Harnasie

Available on YouTube as Szymanowski Danse Paysanne from Harnasie (Filipczak)

Karlowicz: Selected songs, Op. 1

Ms. Filipczak is also a singer! She sang two short songs by Mieczyslaw Karlowicz, a composer whose short life crossed from the 19th to the 20th century. This delightful romantic fare was given life by Ms. Filipczak’s luxurious vibrato and closed on a perfect high note.

Debussy: Violin Sonata

This esoteric violin sonata was the composer’s last work. It’s not easy to follow, but Ms. Filipczak played it with conviction. It is available on YouTube as Claude Debussy Sonate No.3 Live Recording (Esther Abrami).

Wienawski: Fantasia on themes from Gounod’s Faust, Op. 20

This was my favorite work of the evening. At times sounding like a cross between Schubert and Chopin, it is a bright, approachable work. The interplay between Magdalena’s violin and Jessica’s piano was delightful.

Jessica, host Rita, and Magdalena

Closing thoughts

The intimate performance space at the Anthoine Penthouse gave the audience a larger-than-life experience. In a modest-sized room, a violin has power and resonance that amplifies the emotional texture of a work.

My lasting impression of Ms. Filipczak’s performance is one of clarity, consistency and beauty.  I enjoyed almost everything that she played, and was impressed by what seemed to be effortless coordination between violin and piano.

On Wednesday, May 5th 2019 at 7:30 pm at The Kosciuszko Foundation in New York, you can see Magdalena and Jessica play this program. See Inspired by Song and Dance – A recital by Magdalena Filipczak, violin and Jessica Xylina Osborne, piano.

 

Rosa Chang, Carlos Arcos perform with Ivan Gusev in NYC

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On May 23rd, 2019 I was privileged to attend an opera recital at the Shoemaker Salon on Central Park West in New York. The event featured Korean soprano Rosa Chang, Ecuadorian baritone Carlos Arcos, and Russian pianist Ivan Gusev.

Ms. Chang previously sang at this venue in January 2018, which I reviewed here. Mr. Gusev recently gave a recital that included some of the works played this evening, reviewed here.

Rosa Chang: Rossini, Liszt and Fauré

Rosa Chang

Ms. Chang introduced each program item before singing it. This was informative and at times entertaining, making for a lively evening.

Rosa Chang’s La Promessa was a treat. Gusev’s sparkling piano intertwined with her conversational phrases in a charming duet. The aria closed on a sustained octave leap, which Ms. Chang hit and held flawlessly.

Throughout the evening Ms. Chang showed fine control over every aspect of her performance: her voice, expressions and gestures.

Carlos Arcos: Tosti, Reynaldo Hahn

Carlos Arcos

Mr. Arcos’s Tosti showcased his passionate delivery and magnificent voice. An Ecuadorian, he convinced me that he had become Italian for Tosti’s Non t’amo piu.

Carlos Arcos’s A Chloris opened with a harmonic progression on the piano that is reminiscent of Pachelbel’s Canon. Indeed after his performance, a member of the audience asked Arcos about possible influences.

Ivan Gusev plays Rachmaninov

Ivan Gusev: Rachmaninov, Paganini-Liszt

Rachmaninov’s Études Tableaux in A minor (“The Sea and the Seagulls”) is one of the composer’s crowning achievements.

Gusev’s performance was mesmerizing. I looked for a comparable performance on the Internet and found just one, by Vladimir Ashkenazy.

The work opens in a dream-like state. The right hand crosses the left to punctuate Rachmaninov’s reflective arpeggios with a slow bass motif..

This morphs into waves of excruciating collapse at 2:20, 2:50 and beyond. Then it transitions to a major key, only to slip back to the opening calm. These timings are with respect to Gusev’s 2018 Youtube video.

Gusev also played Liszt’s La Campanella, a demanding work that is as much fun to watch as it is to listen to.

Rigoletto, Don Pasquale, Camelot, La Traviata

After a short Intermission we heard three more excellent arias from Rosa Chang and one song from Carlos Arcos.

I don’t have room here to give a run-down on each item. However I would single out Mr. Arcos who, supported by pianist Gusev, gave a heartfelt rendition of If ever I would leave you, the show-stopping romantic ballad from Camelot.

Encores

Ivan Gusev, Robin Shoemaker, Rosa Chang, Carlos Arcos

Carlos Arcos sang Pampamapa by Carlos Guastavino. The piano accompaniment for this Argentinian song at times imitates the strumming of a guitar.

Rosa Chang sang Puccini’s O mio babbino caro, The aching beauty of this aria is so typical of Puccini. Ms. Chang’s refined vibrato and her perfect attack once again resulted in an exquisite performance.

Ivan Gusev closed the evening with a virtuoso performance of Chopin’s Minute Waltz. I loved how he played with pacing in order to magnify the accelerando of the waltz.

Closing Thoughts

In these troubled times it is reassuring to see such diverse musicians collaborate to present an evening of great music.

Rosa Chang stood out as as a superlative soprano who could perform for the most discriminating audience.

Carlos Arcos pulled off a win despite joining the program at short notice.

And pianist Ivan Gusev played tirelessly through the entire evening, both as an accompanist and as a soloist.