pianist Archives - ROVING PIANIST

Pianist Suejin Jung at Central Park West

Saturday, February 15th, 2020 by Ken Turner

Suejin Jung at Central Park West 2/15/2010

Suejin Jung, 2/15/2020 at Central Park West

Suejin Jung and Gustavo Miranda-Bernales

Pianist Suejin Jung brought a guest pianist to her February 15th recital at the Shoemaker Salon at Central Park West. Chilean pianist Gustavo Miranda-Bernales and Suejin took turns at the piano, ending with a four-handed duet.

Curtis Curtis-Smith: Etude No. 9

Gustavo Miranda-Bernales opened the recital with Curtis Curtis-Smith’s Etude #9 “for the Independent Rubato of the Right Hand”. A millenial work published in the year 2000, it quickly revealed its own unique and pleasant harmonic spatter. There were also hints of jazz and new age piano.

Debussy: Feux d’Artifice

Gustavo Miranda-Bernales plays Debussy

Debussy’s Feux d’Artifice (“fireworks”) is a swirling, percussive drama. Mr. Miranda-Bernales gave a clear, jagged rendition, climaxing with a gut-punch from the bottom A of the Shoemaker Steinway, followed by a searing glissando and then fading away over a distant thunder of rolling bass.

Published in 1913, the work now appears to herald the opening salvos of the First World War.

Debussy: Étude 7 pour les degrés chromatiques

Suejin Jung played this challenging étude with ease. Musically, it felt somewhat harsh and unrewarding, but as a technical exercise it was impressive.

Debussy: Préludes, Book 1

Suejin Jung played the following well-known preludes from Book 1. I particularly appreciated the first, Les sons et les parfums. Apropos of nothing, Les sons ends with the same bottom A that I mentioned in Mr. Bernales’ Feux d’Artifice.

Franz Schubert: Fantasie in C major Op. 15 “Wanderer”

Schubert’s restless, charming Fantasie contains hints of the darker edge of his later sonatas. But even in Gustavo Miranda-Bernales’ commanding hands, it could not rise to the level of e.g. the great D 960 sonata in B flat Major.

Nevertheless, MIranda-Bernales’ compelling execution of this difficult work earned him raucus applause.

Frédéric Chopin: Sonata No. 3 in B minor

Robin Shoemaker, Gustavo Morales and Suejin Jung

Robin, Gustavo and Suejin

Chopin’s Piano Sonata No. 3 in B minor Op. 58 is like a tray of jewels spread in front of the listener. How can one describe such glittering beauty and magical craft?

I was struck by how balanced Suejin Jung’s presentation was. Each movement and every section felt not too hot and not too cold, but just right. Her Largo was exquisitely paced and luminous, Chopin at his most sublime.

And even the galloping Presto, which opens with weighty romanticism reminiscent of Schubert, was reined back sufficiently by Suejin that it morphed from manic to majestic.

For this reviewer, Suejin Jung’s Chopin was the highlight of the evening. It was still playing in my head on the long ride home.

Encore: Fauré Le Pas Espagnol

Le Pas Espagnol is the last section of Faure’s Dolly Suite for four-hand piano. For this rousing Spanish dance, the pianists sat together with Gustavo playing the primo (upper) part. It was a delightful way to close the evening, leaving everyone with a smile on their face.

Pianist Ivan Gusev at Tenri New York

Tuesday, February 11th, 2020 by Ken Turner

Ivan Gusev playing C. P. E. Bach in New York

Ivan Gusev plays C. P. E. Bach at Tenri Cultural Institute

On February 8th 2020, Ivan Gusev gave a piano recital at the Tenri Cultural Institute in New York. The event was organized by the Leschetizky Association in honor Theodor Leschetizky (1830-1915).

Mr. Gusev has been featured in this blog before.

However this was the first time we saw him play works written by a composer born before Mozart.

C. P. E. Bach: Rondo in C Major H 260; Sonata in A minor (Württemberg)

At the Tenri Institute, the ceiling was high and square, and the walls were bare. Acoustically, conditions were challenging for the performer.

Nevertheless, Gusev’s Rondo was a delightful morsel which the pianist evidently loved playing. But the A minor Sonata felt less clear, possibly due to acoustics.

Beethoven: Sonata No. 14 in C# minor Op. 27 No. 7 (“Moonlight”)

Gusev’s Adagio Sostenuto worked well with the room’s resonance. His stately pacing had a slow pulse that pulled the listener inexorably to the closing arpeggios.

The lighter Allegretto functioned as a measured transition from reflection to action. Gusev exploded into a riveting Presto Agitato that, despite the occasional glitch, felt glorious and triumphant.

Debussy: Preludes, Book 1

After the intermission, Ivan Gusev presented a set of Debussy preludes. It included favorites such as La Fille aux Cheveux de Lin. Gusev certainly has a flair for Debussy. This reviewer was so entranced that he forgot to take mental notes for his readers.

Encore: Minute Waltz and Liebestraum

Ivan Gusev’s first encore was Chopin’s crowd-pleasing Minute Waltz. I’ve heard him play this as an encore before. On this evening I preferred his second encore, Liszt’s Liebestraum S. 541 No. 3.

While Ivan Gusev appears to relish showpieces, his talent shines brightest in more atmospheric works such as the Debussy of this program, or his Rachmaninov Études-Tableaux cited in a prior Roving Pianist review.

Leschetizky Association

Assn. President Zelma Bodzin, Ivan Gusev, VP Alison Thomas

Students of Theodor Leschetizky founded the non-profit Leschetizky Association “to perpetuate his ideals and principles of piano playing and teaching”.

The Association offers performance opportunities for members and their students. Also, they organize concerts, masterclasses and a concerto competition for young pianists.

We thoroughly enjoyed the Leschetizky Association’s concert featuring pianist Ivan Gusev. The venue was warm and pleasant, the organizers friendly, and the refreshments good.

While the performance space had acoustic challenges, Gusev adapted well. Also, the walls were too bright. When taking photographs, I was “shooting against the light”.

For more about the Association, consult www.leschetizky.org. The .com site www.leschetizky.com is unrelated.

Beatrice Rana Debuts at Carnegie

Wednesday, March 13th, 2019 by Ken Turner

Pianist Beatrice Rana at her Carnegie Debut March 2019

Beatrice Rana

On Tuesday March 12th 2019, Italian pianist Beatrice Rana made her Carnegie debut at Carnegie’s Zankel Hall.

A 2013 Van Cliburn competition silver medalist (see this photograph) Beatrice at age 25 has been performing in major concert halls around the world for years.

Zankel is a modest venue of about 600 seats, hardly intimidating to an experienced international pianist. But the New York audience is notoriously demanding.

Ms. Rana came on stage in an elegant, floor-length sequined copper gown. If she was nervous, the only hint might have been how quickly she got down to business.

Chopin: Twelve Etudes Op. 25

Beatrice Rana on stage at her Carnegie debut

I love New York!

The drape of the copper gown presaged the flowing arpeggios and modulations of the first Etude (“Aeolian Harp”, A-flat Major). Ms. Rana’s damper work allowed the harp-like sonorities of this etude to glow.

Throughout the Etudes, Beatrice Rana focused intently on the keyboard. She employed no visual theatrics, going little further than the occasional lift of her right eyebrow. Her left hand came nicely forward when voicing called for it. I personally liked her well-managed pedal, however some people would have preferred different handling of harmonics in certain Etudes.

Ms. Rana sailed through technical challenges such as the Op. 26 No. 6 (“Thirds”, G-sharp minor) and particularly Op. 26 No 11 (“Winter Wind”, A minor), where she showed her virtuosity and prodigious power.

The final Etude Op. 26 no 12 (“Ocean”, C-sharp minor) was masterfully executed. During this aptly-labeled Etude Ms. Rana rocked from side to side, following her hands. Swaying is intrinsic to this work, but her dinghy-like rock-and-roll was so pronounced that I wondered if it was intended as a metaphor for Chopin’s waves.

Ravel: Miroirs

Miroirs is an evocative 5-section suite for solo piano, a well-chosen programmatic bridge between Chopin and Stravinsky.

After Ms. Rana’s sublime pedalwork for Chopin, I looked forward to hearing her project the sonorities of Ravel. But although her delivery was fine, I was not entirely satisfied. I can’t point to anything specific, but it felt a little choppy.

Of course, it may be that the disconnect is on the reviewer’s side.

Stravinsky: Three Movements from The Firebird

This exciting piano transcription by Agosti of 3 sections from Stravinsky’s Firebird suite is a concert favorite. Beatrice Rana gave a spirited rendering. No harmonic muddying here! I loved her marcatissimo closing.

Encores

After the main program, Beatrice treated us to two encores by Chopin: Prelude in F# minor Opus 28 and Scherzo #18 in B flat minor. She has an obvious flair for Chopin, so it made for a fun ending to a great evening.

Pianist Beatrice Rana at Carnegie after her debut with Ken Turner

Beatrice Rana at Carnegie with author Ken Turner

Meeting Beatrice

After the recital we went to the Carnegie “Mix and Mingle” event.

To our delight Beatrice (pronounced Bay-ah-tree-cheh) Rana herself came out to join us, friendly and accommodating to her fans.

Of all the questions I had for Ms. Rana, there was time for just one. So I asked her how it felt to walk out on stage at Carnegie for the first time. “Exciting”, she gleamed.

For more about Beatrice Rana, see her web site at www.beatricepiano.com.