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Pianist Tiffany Poon in Rhode Island

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Tiffany Poon at her Core Memory recital Rhode Island 2019

Tiffany Poon is one of the first classical pianists to vlog about her life as a pianist.

She is an engaging communicator and works hard to expand her following; see my article Pianist Tiffany Poon meets Fans in NYC.

The resulting fan engagement has accelerated Tiffany’s social media presence to critical mass, bringing her invitations to perform around the world. With almost 110k YouTube followers at the time of writing, Tiffany’s concerts have sold out in places as diverse as Singapore and Brazil.

Given her popularity, I was lucky to get a seat at Tiffany’s very first house concert on April 20th 2019, hosted by Craig Maynard’s Core Memory venture in Rhode Island. Although 180 miles from my home, this was nothing compared with the distance some people traveled for this concert.

OMG it’s Tiffany!

When Tiffany walked through the audience to the piano, everyone went a little crazy. She was exactly the same in person as in her vlogs, except that instead of her usual low-key attire, she wore a dazzling scarlet outfit and golden heels. I felt like we were watching the birth of a star.

Bach: French Suite No. 5, BWV 816

Tiffany Poon at Core Memory Rhode Island

Tiffany in action

Tiffany’s Bach was a sublime ice-breaker, sweetly colored by subtle, sometimes rapid pedal. Her voicing was fluid, using finely controlled dynamics to weave the left hand to the front and back of the sound stage. I’ve heard crisper baroque ornamentation, but I prefer Tiffany’s warmer, less clinical interpretation.

Haydn: Keyboard Sonata in E Flat Major, Hob. XVI:52

This work (Haydn’s last) is a kaleidoscope of contrasts which gave Tiffany lots to work with. She brought out the essence of this spirited, alternately grand and cheeky work, earning rousing applause from her audience.

Chopin: Barcarolle in F Sharp Major, Op 60

Tiffany played this work at the 2015 Chopin Competition in Warsaw. Her Rhode Island performance in 2019 was identical in pace, with a little more sparkle and less angst. Taking into account different venues, pianos, and recording equipment, these performances were comparable. Tiffany knows how she wants to play the Barcarolle and is remarkably consistent in her delivery.

Chopin: Nocturne in C minor Op. 48, No. 1

Few pianists are able to evoke the full darkness of the C minor Nocturne. In Rhode Island, Tiffany brought gloom to the forefront with her deep left hand in the opening. However some elongated phrasing as the work shifted from minor to major blunted the edge of this work. For me there was a bit too much piu lento, making for more sweetness than called for. But these are personal preferences and do not detract from Tiffany’s sumptuous performance. Hers was a nuanced interpretation, where raw grief is offset by (to coin a phrase) natural beauty.

Chopin: Nocturne in E minor Op. 72, No. 1

The E minor Nocturne is overshadowed by Chopin’s better-known works. But on this rainy Rhode Island evening, Tiffany Poon gave a stunning performance of this melancholy work that had those exquisite dissonances tugging at the soul. She was uncharacteristically restrained in her gestures, allowing the music to work on us without distraction from the performer. At the end her right arm crossed her left to play the final note, a period at the end of a very profound statement by this remarkable young pianist.

Chopin: Ballade No. 4 in F minor Op. 52

This beloved work was a good choice to close Tiffany’s concert. Not as dolorous as the preceding Nocturne, it is more challenging and complex. For Ms. Poon here was an opportunity to show once again the range of her talent. As we watched, the music seemed to take over the pianist, shaking head her like a rag doll. In slower segments her arms floated above the keyboard like those of a ballerina. This was a totally immersed performance by Tiffany that must have used every muscle in her body.

Encores: Liszt, Schumann

Tiffany played two encores. The first needs no introduction, she said (Liszt: Liebestraum no. 3). My neighbor tapped me on the shoulder to find out what it was. The second (Schumann: Träumerei) was by her favorite composer, she hinted. This reviewer recognized it instantly, but had to browse YouTube to find its name!

This is a common disconnect between artist and audience. There will always be someone who needs to be told. At a home concert we can ask, but at a major venue such as Carnegie some folk may leave not knowing what you played! Keep this in mind during your many future encores, Tiffany!

Tiffany Poon chatting with her audience

Closing Thoughts

This was Tiffany’s first house concert, and she was entertainingly and characteristically frank about not knowing protocols for taking bows and going offstage. After the performance, she sat at the piano and chatted with us for a lengthy period, taking questions and making no effort to bring things to a close.

This generosity of spirit will serve Tiffany well, although it may be harder to maintain once she is touring as a world class concert pianist. After this evening in Rhode Island, I have no doubt that she is capable of achieving this dream.

I was impressed by the Core Memory venue, an airy performance space with excellent lighting and good acoustics. Our host Craig Maynard did a great job setting this up. Events are open to the public but have limited seating, so sign up early!

Pianist Cong Bi’s Carnegie Debut

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Cong Bi at Carnegie Hall April 12, 2019

Cong Bi’s Carnegie Hall Debut

On April 12th 2019, Chinese pianist Cong Bi strolled on stage in Carnegie’s Zankel Hall for his Carnegie debut.

Relaxed and confident, he looked dashing in patent leather shoes, blue jacket and grey-ish pants.

A tall man with shoulder-length hair, Cong Bi stood with his hand over his heart for a few moments, prompting shrieks from the audience.

The last male pianist whom I saw have this effect at Carnegie was Korean superstar Seon Jin Cho.

Beethoven: Sonata No. 23 Op 57 (Appassionata)

This work was a bold opening gambit for Cong Bi’s Carnegie debut. He engaged the allegro assai with the conviction that we expect from a seasoned performer. However his arpeggios seemed rushed. That which should have glittered was too often blurry.

If Cong Bi overreached during the first movement, he made amends with his authentic andante con moto. This reviewer appreciated the left hand voicing in particular.

Schumann: Davidsbündlertänze, Op 6

Cong Bi Carnegie Debut April 2019 Sold Out

Cong Bi – SOLD OUT!

Cong Bi’s rendition of this work was generally balanced and sweet, occasionally flamboyant. Since the works of Schumann mostly leave this reviewer unmoved, it would not be fair to the performer to comment further.

Mussorgsky: Pictures at an Exhibition

Cong Bi’s Pictures started cautiously and swelled into magnificence. This work can so easily become ponderous, but Cong Bi is not that kind of pianist. I appreciated his engaged, powerful delivery and excellent sense of timing.

However, we could have done without Cong Bi’s abrupt “pointing backwards” arm gestures! These attempts at pianistic drama did not work because they felt inauthentic. For this reviewer, only Lang Lang can get away with such gratuitous posturing.

Cong Bi jokes with his Carnegie audience

Cong Bi jokes with his Carnegie audience April 12, 2019

Encores: Bach

The first encore was a pleasant Bach work that nobody I spoke to could identify.

The second encore was Bach’s Prelude in C Major, BWV 846. Cong Bi played this deceptively simple work with divine translucence.

I’ve commented before on how pianists’ encore choices can be revealing. At the end of the day, Cong Bi did not go for a showpiece. Instead, he went for the sublime.

After the closing bars of Bach, the pianist played a very short jazzy riff. I took this as a youthful gesture of victory: “I got this”!  But maybe it was just for the young women who gave him flowers.

Closing thoughts

Cong Bi is an impressively self-assured and promising young pianist, at ease on stage and able to joust with his audience. In his Carnegie debut he showed himself to be equally at home with Beethoven’s raging Appassionata, Mussorgsky’s monumental Pictures, and Bach at his most ethereal. Watching him reminded me of the Washington Post article The Future of Classical Music is Chinese.

Cong Bi got better and better as the evening went on, but after the intermission I noticed a few empty seats. If only these people had stayed, they would have been rewarded with a stirring performance of Mussorgsky and some magical Bach. And of course, that cheeky riff!

My personal thanks to producer Qianci Liu for inviting me to this most enjoyable recital, and to the Paulus Hook Music Foundation for making it possible.

 

Carnegie 2018: Take It or Levit

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Igor Levit, Carnegie Zankel October 2018

Igor Levit at Carnegie Zankel October 2018

Igor Levit’s 2017 Carnegie recital was described by one reviewer as “a peak pianistic experience of my concertgoing life”.

I signed up for Levit’s 2018 Carnegie recital hoping for just such an experience.

However for me the repertoire of the October 19th recital alone was sufficient reason to subscribe.

And so, after gorgeing ourselves at the Brooklyn Diner on West 57th Street, my dear wife and I entered Carnegie Zankel stuffed with great food and full of expectations.

Bach: Chaconne in D Minor (left hand, arr. Brahms)

I have attended strong two-handed performances of Bach’s D Minor Chaconne (arr. Busoni) by Han Chen and Virna Kljakovic. However Igor Levit was my first live experience of Brahms’ left hand arrangement. I had great hopes for it, because the underlying Partita is superlative.

Bach Partita #2’s Chaconne soars to spiritual heights and sinks to the edge of despair (over the death of Bach’s wife, some say).

But when compared with the edgy clarity of Hilary Hahn’s violin or the harmonic density of Busoni’s two-handed arrangement, Levit’s Chaconne felt as cold as the stone of a cathedral. Somewhere between Brahms and this pianist, the flame went out.

Busoni: Fantasia after J.S. Bach, BV 253

As per Busoni, Fantasia opens serioso, sostenuto e sempre sottovoce. In Levit’s hands, these directions were faithfully executed.

From my front row right seat, I had a great view of Levit’s sostenuto. I was able to see how he worked the pedals to create ethereal tones in higher registers. He used much partial pedal to thread the hazardous path between too little resonance and too much.

I could literally see the resulting harmonics hanging in the air. They looked like a church organ, with harp-like strings in place of pipes.

Mr. Levit’s performance of this work was the high point of his recital, and utterly mesmerizing. You can hear him play this for yourself at Igor Levit plays Busoni Fantasia nach J.S. Bach – live 2015.

Schumann: Variations in E-flat Major on an Original Theme

This serene but unremarkable work left your reviewer unmoved. This was not through any fault of Mr. Levit. Schumann never has done much for me. Perhaps you, dear reader, will get more out of Igor Levit’s Variations in E-Flat Major on an Original Theme “Ghost Variations”, WoO 24 than I did.

Wagner: Solemn March to the Holy Grail from Parsifal (arr. Liszt)

The Solemn March opens with a descending bass motif that sounds like huge bells tolling over a stately procession. The bells continue throughout the work, giving it a gravitas that fitted the rest of the recital program. Although there are more dramatic performances, I personally appreciated Mr. Levit’s understated interpretation.

Liszt: Fantasia and Fugue on Ad nos, ad salutarem undam (arr. Busoni)

Liszt is the kind of composer you either love or you hate. My wife and I are at opposite ends of this spectrum, but I have to agree that this brash, showy work does not inspire me the way even the Parsifal arrangement did.

In my opinion Mr. Levit could profitably have dropped this work from his program, buying him time for a couple of encores that would have greatly endeared him to his neglected Carnegie audience.

Frederic Rzewski “A Mensch” from Dreams, Part I [encore]

Mr. Levit announced that he would play only one encore. Disappointing as this was, it is hard to imagine following a program of such gravity with any kind of casual crowd-pleaser.

Indeed, A Mensch was no crowd-pleaser. Your unfortunate reviewer neither liked nor understood this awkward, atonal work. For future performances, it would help if Mr. Levit would grace his audience with a brief musical introduction.

What was the point of the pianist rapping the piano with his fingers, or the closing moment when he slid his foot off the damper pedal so that it sprang up with a loud CLACK?

Igor Levit: one of a kind

When Mr. Levit was ready to start Busoni’s Fantasia, a latecomer was being seated. Whatever he may have felt, Levit flashed a good-natured smirk at the audience. It was a reassuring moment, and one of many indications that although Igor Levit is a different kind of pianist, he is still human.

There were cases where Mr. Levit’s individuality was less impressive. At the end of Busoni’s Fantasia, and again at the end of Liszt/Wagner’s Solemn March to the Holy Grail, the audience waited politely for the pianist to sit up and indicate that he was finished. Instead, Levit started the next part of his recital. These were awkward moments, verging on rude.

There were other moments that I could cite to illustrate Mr. Levit’s uniqueness, but I will trade them all for the answer to one question. When you were sight-reading from your iPad, Mr. Levit, I did not see a page-turner pedal. So how did you turn the page?