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You are here: Home / Archives for Ken Turner

Denis Matsuev Overwhelms Carnegie

Wednesday, October 23rd, 2019 by Ken Turner

Denis Matsuev

Denis Matsuev strode on to the Carnegie stage on Sunday October 20th, 2019.

Well over 6 feet tall, he looked powerful and solid, the proverbial Russian bear.

Outside Carnegie, a group of protesters chanted in Russian that Matsuev supports war. But surely there are more effective ways to critique Russian foreign policy than harassing a world-class pianist!

Liszt: Piano Sonata in B minor

Liszt’s Sonata opens with a deep pulse in the Steinway’s chocolately low end. Matsuev paced this perfectly. Then it explodes into drama and episodic wandering, interspersed with archetypally Liszt-ian hammering climaxes.

This is a self-consciously great work. It is difficult for the pianist to imbue it with gravitas, because the work is patchy and wanders a lot. In Matsuev’s hands it felt harmonically muddy and sometimes rushed. For comparison, here is a recording of Marta Argerich.

The Roving Pianist Concert Clown award goes to the man who stood and started clapping before the last notes died away.

Liszt: Mephisto Waltz No. 1 S. 514

The Mephisto Waltz gives the pianist more to work with. It is an adventurous, lively work and Matsuev was wholly on top of it, sometimes to excess. Again there was some rushing. To be fair, the audience wanted a virtuoso performance and Matsuev obliged. At times the piano shook visibly from his raw power. This was the Matsuev machine we had come to see, a massive performance that brought the audience to its feet.

Tchaikovsky: Dumka in C minor Op. 59

Denis Matsuev at Carnegie Oct. 2019

Denis Matsuev with flowers Carnegie 2019

Tchaikovsky’s symphonies and concertos are the core of this cinematic Russian composer’s public image. Piano-lovers are familiar with his The Seasons. The Dumka is less well-known. It combines oh-so-Russian descending minor progressions with a dance that alternately sounds like fairies and trolls. Alas the dancers are unable to rise above the beautiful gloom.

From a pianist famed for how much noise he can get out of a piano, Matsuev’s Dumka was an unexpected treasure.

Stravinsky: Three Movements from Petrushka

Here again was a percussive showpiece for Matsuev to strut his stuff. I’ve heard many pianists play Stravinsky, and Matsuev’s rendition was one of the more impressive. But my response was muted because by then my appetite for hammering was overshadowed by the need to hear something more fulfilling.

Encores

Like Yuja Wang at Carnegie in 2016, Denis Matsuev really came alive with his encores.

As I have mentioned to other concert pianists, the audience may not recognize your encores. Even just naming the composer will help us figure it out. But Matsuev did not talk to us, and I recognized only two of his four encores. Later I identified the Sibelius by browsing recordings of Matsuev. Of the remaining unidentified encore, I can only say that it was light and possibly Russian.

Rachmaninov Études-Tableaux Op. 39 No. 2 in A minor

Rachmaninov was, for this reviewer, the highlight of Matsuev’s recital. It was lighter in the left hand than I prefer, but still had that heart-bursting cacophonous climax that I first heard played by the young Russian pianist Ivan Gusev.

Sibelius Etude No. 2 from Thirteen Pieces, Op. 76

I did not recognize this encore, but I could tell it was Russian. Wrong! Although it could pass for a Russian sailors’ hornpipe, it turned out to have been Sibelius. Not so far off geographically, I suppose.

Grieg-Ginzburg In the Hall of the Mountain King

Matsuev’s last encore was the Ginzburg arrangement of In the Hall of the Mountain King from Grieg’s Peer Gynt Suite No. 1. Matsuev sauced it up by playing the declamatory first note and extending the subsequent pause while chuckling with the audience. There followed an unashamedly hammered, ridiculously over-speed performance that was breathtaking to watch.

Final Thoughts

I enjoyed this concert, but I wish that Denis Matsuev had chosen a more integrated Liszt work, e.g. Harmonies du Soir. Compared with Rachmaninov’s Études-Tableaux, Liszt’s B minor Sonata seemed like a waste of Matsuev’s talent. If his audience wants him to hammer the piano, Rachmaninov offers plenty options.

Filed Under: Concerts, Public concerts Tagged With: Carnegie Hall, Denis Matsuev, Dumka, Edvard Grieg, Etudes Tableaux, harmonies du soir, Liszt, Mephisto Waltz, Petrushka, Putin, Rachmaninov, Russian Bear, Sibelius, steinway, Stravinsky, Tchaikovsky, Vladimir Putin

Gloriosa Trio Recital at Central Park West

Wednesday, October 16th, 2019 by Ken Turner

Gloriosa Trio with Karen LeFrak and the Gloriosa Trio CD

Gloriosa Trio with Karen LeFrak and the Gloriosa Trio CD

On Tuesday October 15th, 2019, the Gloriosa Trio performed at Robin Shoemaker’s Central Park West salon.

The Trio comprises pianist Yoonie Han, violinist Eric Silberger and cellist Kevin Bate. They recently released their first CD (Centaur Records).

The program consisted of various items by Gabriel Fauré including 3 of Gloriosa Trio’s own arrangements. It also included a work by New York composer Karen LeFrak, who was present at the concert.

Fauré: Sicilienne Op. 78

Cellist Kevin Bate

Kevin Bate in action

This piece was originally written for piano and cello. It was later orchestrated by the composer and became part of his Pelléas et Mélisande suite. Various other arrangements exist, including one by Gloriosa Trio.

The Trio played their own cello-forward arrangement. Piano and violin weaved a poignant atmosphere around Kevin Bate’s strong but tender cello. In this arrangement the violin picked up some phrases that the piano carries in the original, adding a touch more color and sweetness.

LeFrak: Gloriosa

Composer Karen LeFrak with the Trio after they performed Gloriosa

When musicians play your work: Karen LeFrak with Gloriosa Trio

Karen LeFrak’s Gloriosa premiered in 2015. It shares some of the wistful atmosphere of Fauré’s century-old music, making for a good program fit.

The work itself was evocative and at times playful, worthy of further listening.

The composer and musicians embraced after playing her composition.

Fauré: Pavane, Op 50

Fauré’s Pavane seemed tailor-made for Gloriosa Trio. It is sad but not tragic. It is also exquisitely French, beautiful to the edge of sentimentality.

At first the pizzicato-like piano accompaniment felt a little strong. But I came to realize that those staccato arpeggios were the heartbeat of this delightful oeuvre. They bring tension and motion to this otherwise soft and gentle work.

Fauré: Trois mélodies Op. 7 No. 1 “Après un Rêve”

This is a short and beautiful song, arranged by Gloriosa Trio for their instruments. For comparison, here is a link to the vocal version as sung by New Zealand fully lyric soprano Kiri Te Kanawa.

Fauré: Piano Trio Op. 120

The Piano Trio was the only Fauré composition of the evening that the Gloriosa Trio had not themselves arranged. It is a late work, completed in 1923.

Compared with the music played earlier, the Piano Trio was relatively ascetic. This reviewer found it to be pleasant but a little diffuse. It is evidently a composition that requires repeat listening.

Gloriosa Trio

Gloriosa Trio is an excellent piano trio, despite their relatively infrequent collaborations. Their concert at the Shoemaker Salon was delectable, and Fauré’s music seemed tailor-made for them. Their arrangements were clean and true to the original, to the point that they could have been written by composer himself.

We have seen pianist Yoonie Han at the Shoemaker salon before, see this review.

Kevin Bate, Yoonie Han, Robin Shoemaker, Eric Silberger 10/15/2019

Filed Under: Concerts, Private Concerts Tagged With: Apres un reve, Eric Silberger, Gabriel Fauré, Gloriosa Trio, Karen LeFrak, Kevin Bate, Kiri Te Kanawa, Pavane, piano trio, Robin Shoemaker, Yoonie Han

Pianist Gábor Farkas at the Classical Bridge Festival

Tuesday, July 30th, 2019 by Ken Turner

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.

Filed Under: Concerts, Public concerts Tagged With: Chopin Ballade, Classical Bridge Festival, Gabor Farkas, Lang Lang, Liszt

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