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Nina Scheidmantel Carnegie Hall Debut

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Nina Scheidmantel at Carnegie

Nina Scheidmantel at Carnegie

On Saturday October 29, 2016, I went to Carnegie Weill to see pianist Nina Scheidmantel’s Carnegie debut recital. I had decided to attend based on her web site and some videos on YouTube. While the videos were quirky (in more than one her dress magically changed while she was on stage) I could see that she was capable.

Presented by the Artist

Nina’s recital was billed as “Presented by the Artist”, meaning that it was privately funded. I wondered if I might get to meet her manager and gain insight into how to set up such an event myself.

German-Chinese Pianist

Two hours before Ms. Scheidmantel’s concert I stopped by at Carnegie to photograph her poster. An elfin gentleman in some kind of dress clothing appeared by my side, asking if he could interest me in the recital. When I showed him my ticket, we became instant friends.

It turned out that this affable gentleman was managing Ms. Scheidmantel’s recital. He told me that as a German-Chinese pianist, Ms. Scheidmantel had given recitals in China and earned interest from both Chinese and German authorities, some of whom were expected to attend this performance. It promised to be a great evening.

Balcony at Carnegie Weill

I had not been upstairs at Carnegie Weill before, and was delighted to find that my front and center keyboard-side seat was just perfect. Weill is small (around 260 seats) so even in the balcony I was closer to the performer than most of the audience are in the 2800-seat Stern Auditorium. I had brought my concert binoculars, but I did not need them.

Program and Artist

Nina’s program included Ravel, Beethoven, Schumann, Brahms and Prokofiev. After a brief announcement by the gentleman I had met earlier, Ms. Scheidmantel came on stage in an elegant floor-length black gown, with her hair up in a sparkling silver tiara. I was struck by how tall she was, and how much more Chinese she looked compared with her Carnegie Hall poster. Two of my favorite pianists (Lang Lang and Yuja Wang) are Chinese, so my expectations grew accordingly.

Of Pianists and Dragons

Ms. Scheidmantel attacked her Ravel vigorously. Although Valses Nobles et Sentimentales opens percussively, I have never thought of it as bombastic, but that was how Ms. Scheidmantel came across. Indeed, that was how she also played Beethoven, Schumann, and Brahms. At the end of each piece, she clenched her arms in a victorious flourish, as if she had just slain a dragon.

Release the Pedal, Nina!

Nina had a signature move where she would sustain a single note at the end of a section, long enough to transform it into something magical. Unfortunately she came off the pedal so slowly that sometimes she fell foul of damper mechanics. The resonating string would buzz for a long second, making it sound frayed. Was this a flaw in the regulation of the house Steinway, or should Nina have lifted her foot more decisively?

More Nuanced

I struggled to repress my discomfort at the endless Sturm und Drang of Nina’s performance. While I was struck by how physically powerful she was at the keyboard, I wish that she had included something more nuanced in her program. If I were her manager I would advise her to switch out Schumann in favor of something leaner. Chopin’s C minor Nocturne Op. 48 No 1 would have suited her style well and made for a rounder program.

Expectations

After the Brahms I felt that Nina had shown us everything that she could do, so I left. I felt good about supporting a relatively unknown artist, but bad that I had expected more of her than was reasonable. I was also disappointed at the choice of repertoire, which may have contributed to my perception of the pianist as a little heavy-handed.

The gentleman managing the recital had told me that this was not a publicity event so much as a family celebration and Nina’s personal dream. As a pianist myself I can relate to this dream, but when you sell tickets to the public you put yourself in the public eye, and the public has expectations.

Nina Scheidmantel – a Spirited Performance

Nina Scheidmantel carried off her Carnegie debut well for someone so early in her career. She appeared totally at ease and gave a spirited performance that speaks well for her future. I hope that as she matures artistically and her repertoire grows, we will see her again in New York.

Kristian Bezuidenhout, Carnegie 2016

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Kristian Bezuidenhout at Carrnegie Zankel 2016Bezuidenhout at Carnegie, October 2016

On Monday October 24th, 2016, my wife and I went to see pianist Kristian Bezuidenhout at Carnegie Hall, New York.  Actually I did not know this pianist, but the Carnegie Series that I subscribed to included his Beethoven-heavy program and it looked promising.

Mr. Bezuidenhout’s name sounds Dutch. In fact he is from South Africa, a former Dutch and British colony. He lives in London, from where his trendy cosmopolitan clothing, stylishly tight with rumples, may have come. His patent leather shoes had beech-colored soles that matched the matte wood of Carnegie Zankel.

Carnegie Zankel Hall

This was the first time I had been to Carnegie’s Zankel Hall. In photographs, Zankel looks modern and sharp. In person and up close from the Parterre, however, the luster was tired. The Hall smelled musty, and the stage front needed cosmetic work. Also, the Hall is a couple of levels below the ground, so from time to time I could hear the muffled bass of the New York Subway somewhere to stage right.

The Instrument

The piano was angular in design, with frond-like cinnamon artwork on the casing. Naïvely I assumed that this was a modernistic design in keeping with Zankel’s styling, but many readers will know better.

Fortepiano at Carnegie Zankel October 2016

Beethoven Rondo in C Major, Rondo in G Major

Bezuidenhout opened with two Beethoven Rondos. I was struck by the fineness of his touch and his ability to separate voices, especially at the lower end. It was as if each voice were suspended in its own acoustic space. In part this was because the piano lacked the power of the traditional concert grand, so there was less “bleed” from one register to another. In the acoustic intimacy of the 600-seat Zankel Hall, this made the instrument sound as beautiful as it looked.

Expression and Gesture

As a young man I attended several seasons of the Leeds International Piano Competition. There I saw many fine pianists, including Radu Lupu and Victoria Postnikova, but I don’t remember those performers as individuals. Now that I am older, I savor the uniqueness of each pianist’s personal nuances of expression and gesture. For this reason we splurged on front-row seats, which gave us an unparalleled view of Bezuidenhout on stage.

There was no cultivated drama in Bezuidenhout’s keyboard presence: his performance was all about the music. I noticed that Bezuidenhout’s eyebrows were always on the move. His use of sheet music had a less-desirable impact, however. Leaning low over the instrument, he had a particular rightward glance that might in other circumstances be seen as “giving the evil eye”. Try reading sheet music from a few inches above the left keys and you’ll get the idea.

Beethoven Sonata No. 7 in D Major

When Mr. Bezuidenhout moved to Beethoven’s Sonata No. 7 in D major, he drew the Largo out so exquisitely that I barely heard the rest of the piece or the subsequent Haydn.  Only the best pianists can capture my attention like this, so I will be scouring the web for more Bezuidenhout and for other renditions of this Sonata.

The Fortepiano

During the Intermission I browsed the program and discovered that the recital instrument was a not a piano, but a fortepiano. When Bezuidenhout returned, he gave an impromptu monologue about this instrument. He commented on the light action, the four pedals, how the strings were not cross-strung, and how the design gave the instrument its unique sonic character. In this modern replica, he explained, we were hearing the Viennese fortepiano as Beethoven would have known it.

Beethoven Sonata No. 8 (“Pathétique”)

The last scheduled piece was Beethoven’s Sonata no. 8 (“Pathétique”), a personal favorite that I never tire of. Mr. Bezuidenhout’s Carnegie performance was stellar. While the fortepiano lacked the low end power of a modern concert grand, Bezuidenhout’s interpretation retained all of the Sonata’s drama.

Excellent and Informative

As an encore, Bezuidenhout played a Beethoven-like piece that I could not identify. It was a fitting close to the evening’s 18th-century repertoire, performed on an 18th-century instrument replica. I enjoyed this recital much more than I had expected, and thanks to Mr. Bezuidenhout’s short lecture I learned more about the fortepiano. Now I just have to find a fortepiano that someone will let me play!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yuja Wang at Carnegie – May 2016

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Yuja Wang at Carnegie Hall May 14th 2016

Yuja Wang comes on stage at Carnegie, May 14th 2016

On May 14th, 2016  I attended Yuja Wang’s recital at Carnegie Hall, with my wife Patti. This performance was the reason I became a Carnegie subscriber a year ago: I had to have great seats, and we did.

The last time I was at Carnegie was to see Kissin (reviewed here). For him, additional seats were placed on stage to squeeze in as many spectators as possible. Not so for Yuja Wang.

Since Ms. Wang’s recital was sold out, it surprised me that she had the stage to herself. I am sure that she was happy about that, however. It can’t be easy to have the audience intruding on your personal space when you are tackling such strenuous repertoire.

Yuja Wang’s Sparkle

People will tell you that Yuja Wang’s clothing has nothing to do with how well she plays, but this reviewer acknowledges that those fabulous outfits are part of Yuja’s brand. I would have been disappointed if she did not look like a diva. I was not disappointed: she walked out on stage in one of the most beautiful gowns I have ever seen. Its color reminded me of the pale salmon that I had across the street an hour earlier at the Europa Cafe (205 W 57th St., recommended). The gown didn’t just sparkle, it flared and outshone the highlights of the black Carnegie Steinway. You can get a hint of that from my photograph.

Brahms Ballade in D Minor

The recital opened with the Brahms’ Ballade in D Minor, Op. 10 No. 1. This was impressively sonorous, and for me the best part of the scheduled repertoire.  I settled back to absorb the rest of the evening, but when she moved on to Schumann’s Kreisleriana, I could not feel it. I can’t fault Ms. Wang: I personally have never gotten much out of Schumann.

Beethoven’s Hammerklavier Sonata

After the intermission, Yuja showed up in a dramatic new gown – dark green with a saucy slit on the audience’s side, as seen in my wife’s photograph (credit Patti Turner). If you wanted skin, this was your moment. But while the dress shimmered, Yuja’s performance seemed a little off. The Adagio was haunting but the rest, to be honest, did not work for me. Perhaps she was dulled by playing the same German program again and again. Or perhaps the Hammerklavier is so complex and demanding, that it is as hard for the audience as it is for the soloist.

Yuja: I don’t know what to play!

After the end of the program I wondered which of Yuja’s legendary encores we would be treated to. I had had enough heavy repertoire, as had most everyone else. When Yuja returned to the piano for an encore, the hall was electric with anticipation. She sat at the keyboard for a few moments, then turned to the audience and said ruefully “I don’t know what to play!”

My heart went out to her. This had not been the most inspiring evening. This was partly due to the program, but in some intangible way it also came from the pianist herself. Maybe she just needed to burn some Rondo Alla Turca.

Gretchen am Spinnrade (Schubert, arr. Liszt)

From that moment on, we were treated to the gifted Yuja we love. I have never heard such a beautiful rendering of the Schubert/Liszt spinning wheel, Gretchen am Spinnrade. There are few pianists who can make me teary, but she did. Or watch it on medici.tv: a year’s subscription costs less than dinner for two in New York.

Carmen and Ronda Alla Turca

At this point it had been a long night for us and for the performer. If Yuja had called it quits, that would have been ok. But she came alive with her encores, and so did we. She gave us both Horowitz’s Carmen and the Mozart/Volodos Rondo Alla Turca. I’ve watched these many times on YouTube, but to see Yuja Wang in person, elbows stretched to both ends of the keyboard delivering these delights, was the treat of a lifetime.

Chopin’s Waltz in C sharp minor

Yuja Verbier 2010 red dress

Yuja, Verbier 2010

Ms. Wang played Chopin’s Waltz in C sharp minor, Op. 64 No. 2 as her final encore. It was beautiful, especially the last 16 bars.

Most pianists do not bring out the descending right hand notes at the end of each bar (G, G, G, F, E, D, C, D). Kissin does, but Rubenstein, Horowitz and Ashkenazy do not. As written, the pedal comes off at the end of the bar, but Yuja holds her thumb down to sustain this note through the next bar. That’s definitely not what’s written, but it makes for a luminous sound. You can see her do this in her superlative Verbier 2010 video, starting right here.

Yuja Wang at Carnegie May 2016: sublime!

We saw two pianists at this event: Yuja Wang the professional who seemed weighed down by the main course, and Yuja Wang the star who lit up for dessert. The star was the Yuja whom I went to Carnegie to see.  She brings out the inner layers of familiar pieces in a way that makes me feel I am hearing them for the first time. At her best, she is sublime.