• F. Liszt (1811-1856), Valse de Faust de Gounod S. 407
• A. N. Skrjabin (1872-1915), Sonata n. 3 in Fa diesis minore, op. 23 Drammatico – Allegretto – Andante – Presto con fuoco
• N. Rota (1911-1979), Fantasia in Sol
• S. Prokofiev (1891-1953), Sonata n. 7 in Si bemolle maggiore, op. 83 – Allegro inquieto – Andante caloroso – Precipitato

https://fb.watch/6ff9YwRDGI/

A star indeed shining brightly at Piano City Pordenone with twenty year old Elia Cecino,winner two years ago of the prestigious Premio Venezia.He has been studying since the age of 9 with Maddalena De Facci which he continues to do, perfecting his studies together with Andrzej Jasinski and Eliso Virsaladze in Fiesole.Liszt Faust fantasy was just the ravishing opening to a formidable performance of Scriabin’s 3rd Sonata.

Franz Liszt held a lifelong fascination with the Faust legend and it is no wonder then that Liszt admired Charles Gounod’s operatic treatment of the legend based loosely on Goethe’s Faust, Gounod’s five act grand opera premiered in Paris at the Théâtre Lyrique on March 19, 1859. Liszt composed his piano transcription of two numbers from the opera in 1861, near the culmination of his time in Weimar.It is based on the waltz scene that concludes Act I and the love-duet, O nuit d’amour between Faust and Marguerite in Act II, Liszt freely borrows from Gounod’s music and elaborates in his own inimitable way.The waltz opens the piece with open fifths on the dominant and uncertain of its tonality similar to the Mephisto Waltz n.1.Eventually dissolving to the love-duet, a melodious Andantino in A-flat major, an untainted depiction of love.The pace gradually returns leading to the waltz with a virtuosistic coda incorporating some material from the introduction.And demonic it was from the very first notes with Elia plunging headlong into the fray with playing of such rhythmic energy and passionate involvement.Followed by scintillating jeux perlé with reams of notes of jewel like precision that just glittered and glowed in his sensitive hands.The love duet was played with sumptuous sounds and a ravishing sense of balance leading to the tumultuous climax and triumphant finale.All brilliance and light just contrasted with the deep brooding motif that pervades Scriabin’s 3rd Sonata.

His performance of Scriabin I have recently spoken about.Nobility was mixed with ravishing beauty as the architectural shape of this great fantasy unwound in a performance of such intelligence and passionate involvement.His performances of Scriabin and Prokofiev I have written about recently :https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.wordpress.com/2021/03/16/elia-cecino-a-star-is-born/

A fascinating Fantasia in G by Nino Rota was a revelation of clarity and line.I have never heard it before and not knowing the programme I tried to guess who the composer could be.Khachaturian and Shostakovich sprang to mind in a performance that was remarkable for its utmost clarity and rhythmic drive .Certainly a worthy addition to the piano repertoire and hats off to this young musician who delves deep into the archives to find some rare baubles ready to be turned into gems in his magic hands. It was only recently discovered among the last manuscripts to be examined in the Nino Rota archive in Venice and together with the “15 Preludes” it is one of his few works for piano solo. It was composed in the oppressive atmosphere of the last years of the war the first and closing sections conjure up a feeling of late Romanticism from the distant past, while the middle section is characterised by melancholy melodies typical of Rota.

Prokofiev’s 7th Sonata was played with such clarity and rhythmic energy that the rather ‘hollywoodian’ Andante caloroso came as a relief from the pungent,biting energy of this sonata from his war trilogy.Even here the precipitato slipped in almost unnoticed until the relentless driving force brought the final tumultuous eruption to its inevitable conclusion.

Called back for two encores not known to me.The first I presume by Scriabin of ravishing beauty and poetry and the second a Prelude and fugue by Shostakovich of such clarity and energy that they just summed up better than any words could ,the extraordinary artistry and curiosity of this remarkable young musician

Dal 2014 Elia Cecino si esibisce con continuità in recital solistici e cameristici spaziando nel repertorio  presso numerose sale europee. Si è proposto da solista con la Sinfónica de Galicia, Düsseldorf Symphony  Orchestra, Sichuan Philarmonic, Bacau Philarmonic, FVG Orchestra, Orchestra Vivaldi di Morbegno,  Joven Orquesta Leonesa, Orchestra Concentus Musicus Patavinus, Orchestra San Marco di Pordenone.  Nel 2016 ha preso parte a un tour di concerti negli Stati Uniti. 

Nel 2020 Suonare Records pubblica il suo CD di debutto, e nel 2021 un secondo album Chopiniano  viene pubblicato da OnClassical. Sue interpretazioni e interviste sono state trasmesse da Rai Radio 3,  Radio Popolare, Rai FVG e Radio MCA. É stato tra i protagonisti della trasmissione TV di Rai 1  “Prodigi” a favore dell’Unicef.  

Vincitore del XXXVI Premio Venezia, Elia si è affermato in concorsi internazionali tra i quali spiccano il Ciudad de Ferrol, Pozzoli di Seregno, Casagrande di Terni, Schumann di Düsseldorf, Luciani di Cosenza, Città di Albenga, Isidor Bajic di Novi Sad, Chopin di Budapest, Marciano di Vienna. Nato nel 2001, Elia comincia lo studio del pianoforte a 9 anni con Maddalena De Facci diplomandosi a 17 con votazione 10 e Lode presso il conservatorio di Cesena. Attualmente si sta perfezionando con Eliso Virsaladze e Andrzej Jasinski.

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.wordpress.com/2021/03/16/elia-cecino-a-star-is-born/

https://fb.watch/6fo7-cEVKG/

Thursday 17 June 4.00 pm 

An amazing week of piano playing crowned today by playing of such mastery I am lost for words after the breathtakingly aristocratic grandeur of Franck.But the rhythmic energy of Bach’s third English Suite,full of the most refined embellishments leading to a Sarabande of such overpowering intensity.The ravishing beauty and clarity that he brought to Beethoven’s op.110 will stay with me for a long time………..much more to follow once I have caught my breath.With a name like his – he is in fact related – one was not expecting visions of such ravishing beauty and subtle artistry.

Bach: English suite no 3 in G minor BWV 808
Prélude / Allemande / Courante/ Sarabande /
Gavotte I / Gavotte II / Gigue

Beethoven: Piano sonata in A flat Op 110

Franck: Prelude, Chorale and Fugue

Here is the link for this exceptional recital – enjoy ! https://youtu.be/Tyys6nnWf0g

I remember a performance in London by a still youthful Wilhelm Kempff.A programme that included this Bach Suite together with the Brahms F minor Sonata in performances where the kapellmeister Kempff could make the piano roar and sing like the mightiest of orchestras.As he got older his vision of the celestial was truly memorable but a shadow of his former prowess.A refined chamber orchestra rather than the Berlin Philharmonic.What he always maintained though was the driving rhythmic energy and the clarity of line that came from a head that was full of the great music that he had shared his life with.All this came to mind as I listened with baited breath to this young Russian trained pianist today.There was the same incisive crystalline clarity with a rhythmic impetus that was like being caught up in an ever flowing torrent.Ravishing contrasts in dynamics and very discreet ornamentation just brought the music vividly to life.It was overwhelming and impossible not to be enveloped in this ever moving wave of sounds.The incisive voicing seemingly without pedal was quite miraculous as we watched his limpet like fingers cling to the keys.A sensitivity that was created by work from a very early age when the fingers are formed almost as an extension of the keys.Agosti was fond of saying fingers like steel but wrists like rubber.But of course it is the message that is sent from the head and heart to the fingers that makes a true artist.

Dmitri is now being mentored by Vanessa Latarche ,head of keyboard at the RCM ,who I have known and admired since she was a little girl and the star pupil of the indomitable Eileen Rowe in Ealing.She has endowed in Dmitri her impeccable good taste and intelligent musicianship and it is this allied to his very early training that has formed the very considerabile artistry that we were treated to in the three great blocks of music that made up his programme today.

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.wordpress.com/2021/03/21/vanessa-latarche-comes-home/

The Allemande of flowing beauty where the subtle ornamentation just added to the expression within the notes without stopping the constant stream of sounds.The Courante with the same relentless urgency was clear and fluid with ornaments that shone like jewels as they unwound like springs from his agile fingers.It was all leading to the great opening statement of the Sarabande played with deeply felt authority,the beautiful dynamic contrasts and ornamentation just adding to the intensity of this monumental statement.The release of tension came with the two Gavottes played with a disarming simplicity .The second Gavotte played with an unusual cleanliness and clarity instead of the more usual cloudy mumblings of a musette.He found once again the rhythmic intensity with the first notes of the Gigue to the final burst that took us to the breathless conclusion.A quite remarkable architectural vision of this work in which the pinnacle and point of arrival was the Sarabande in a fascinating multicoloured journey that was quite extraordinary.

It was in 1983 that I managed to entice Guido Agosti to share in public what had become legend in his studio in Siena.He chose to play op.110 and op.111 prefaced by short talks that although interesting were a means of enticing him into the concert hall.He gave me the facsimiles of the original manuscripts and I chose a few of the more problematic pages to adorn the walls of the Ghione theatre.Chosen to demonstrate the struggle that even Beethoven had to pin point the sounds that only he could hear in his secret ear.

They are still there forty years on and the recording of that performance is one of the rare documents that can testify to the marvels that this very private pupil of Busoni shared with those that would seek him out during the summer months in Siena.Agosti too had a crystalline sound like Kempff and it was this crystalline sound that I heard again today from the very first notes of this great song that Beethoven was to share with a world with which he had finally come to terms .Like Chopin with his Barcarolle that was written towards the end his life too,it is a great outpouring of mellifluous sounds of touching simplicity and beauty.A glimpse of the paradise that awaited them indeed.

Scrupulous attention to detail was quite remarkable from the very first notes -con amabilità with hairpin indications followed by sudden piano and a trill,a mere vibration that unwinds so naturally to the ravishing beauty of the melody that pours from Beethoven’s heart.Embellishments played ‘leggiermente’with very gentle melodic notes so subtly pointed.The part playing just before the development I have never heard played with such clarity and intelligence.One voice seemed to grow out of another leaving the pure magic of just single notes at the extremes of the keyboard played ever more tenderly before the the swirling question and answer from the cellos.The return to the recapitulation was one of those moments of pure magic with a crescendo and diminuendo to pianissimo before the return of the beautiful arabesques.Sometimes smoothing corners even with such loving care can lead to a break in the underlying rhythmic current though,as in the bleak chords that move gently from piano to pianissimo bringing us back to tempo again at the arabesques.It leads into the coda where his sense of part playing was that of a string quartet with every line making such sense as it created a magnificent whole.The final bass semiquavers were pointed in a miraculous way giving a very poignant shape to the final bars.An Allegro molto even here was allowed to sing, the rhythmic energy dissolved with such touching reticence before being rudely interrupted by fortissimo chords .A trio that unwound so mellifluously as the notes just flowed from his fingers with a fluidity and simplicity where most performances hang on a precipice.The silence between the final chords was pregnant with meaning until the final gentle reverberation that takes us to a magic world of sublime beauty.

Just waiting for that magic moment before placing the opening chords and shaping them with such subtle colours that gave a sense of shape to the seemingly sparse chords.Beethoven’s pedal marking scrupulously interpreted which is not easy on a modern piano.The ‘ bebung’ or repeated notes on pianos of the period would have merely been made to vibrate as they were miraculously today .Truly interpreted not just faithfully reproduced which demonstrated the subtle artistry of this young musician.The Adagio was played with such subtle flexibility as the arioso dolente was full of indications by Beethoven that can effect the natural flow of the music in lesser hands.Even the final bass notes were pregnant with meaning with Beethoven’s heart beat indicated so mercilessly with hairpins but translated so poignantly into sounds.A fugue of such clarity and architectural shape as rarely heard .The diminuendo before the great bass entry was like a great gate opening as the fugue weaved its mellifluous way to the magical reappearance of the Arioso.One of those moments of inspired genius where even Beethoven writes ‘loosing all energy with great sadness.’Such precise indications from Beethoven as he tries to notate the sense of flexibility and rubato that is in his private ear and heart ,all wonderfully interpreted by our young Russian musician. The great repeated chords are all the same but each sounding so different as his fingers drove deep into each one finding their secret meaning.The fugue in inversion is suddenly revealed as it is gradually revived in an outpouring of glory that was played with a passionate restraint of such aristocratic poise.The final tumultuous chord of A flat spread over the entire keyboard brought this extraordinary performance to a breathtaking conclusion .

A magnificent performance of Cesar Franck’s Prelude,Choral and Fugue of eloquence and grandeur.To quote Cortot:’The beauty of the Prelude,from which,twice rises a fervent and painful prayer overflowing from the heart of the man and from the inspiration of the musician.The mystical character of the Choral which compares uninterrupted lament with the eternal imploration of a humanity looking for justice and consolation…….The Fugue which crowns the work seems to emanate more from psychic necessity than from a principal of musical composition.‘There was a passionate outpouring of sounds in which again scrupulous attention to detail of dynamics and tempo gave a dignity and architectural shape to a work that can seem in lesser hands,rather rhetorical.Here there were such sensitive colours and a beauty of part playing as one hand answered the other.The clear rich sound of the opening of the Choral gave the perfect sense of religious serenity before the beauty of the choral spread across the entire keyboard. The gradual build up of the fugue was unrelenting until the magical reappearance of the prelude on clouds of sound that built up in tension until the final inexorable,tumultuous explosion

Dmitry Kalashnikov was born in Moscow in 1994. Graduated with distinction from the Moscow Middle Gnessins School of Music (class of Ada Traub and Tatiana Vorobieva) and the Moscow State Tchaikovsky Conservatory (class of Elena Kuznetsova). He is currently a postgraduate at the Royal College of Music in London (class of Vanessa Latarche). Prize-recipient at numerous international competitions. Grant-recipient of the New Names foundation, the International Yuri Rozum Charitable Foundation and the Revival foundation for cultural development. Has received the prize of the Support for Talented Youth of the Government of the Russian Federation, the City of Moscow Prize and the George Stennett Award, supported by a Neville Wathen Scholarship. Gives recitals at the Moscow Conservatoire, the Russian Gnessin Academy of Music, the Moscow International House of Music, London’s Wigmore Hall and at various venues in France, Austria, Poland, Estonia, Italy, Belgium and the United Kingdom. Has appeared on several occasions with the Russian National Orchestra under the baton of Mikhail Pletnev and in a duet with Pletnev on two pianos (conducted by Mischa Damev). In 2017 he gave a recital at the International Piano Festival. In December 2018 he appeared at the Concert Hall of the Mariinsky Theatre with the Mariinsky Orchestra. Takes part in various projects of the State Tretyakov Gallery. For several years he has run artistic soirees with the artist Gavriil Kochevrin for charitable events for orphans at the Marina Tsvetaeva House Museum. These concert performances have seen the participation of Yevgeny Knyazev, Alexander Rudin and Boris Andrianov.In September 2019 he took part in the opening of the season at the Nizhny Novgorod State Opera and Ballet Theatre. In November that year he was the victor of the Jaques Samuel Piano Competition in London for students at academic music institutions. Engagements for 2020 include appearances in Great Britain, Italy, Canada, France, Portugal and Japan.
.

The Keyboard Charitable Trust presents
Damir Durmanovic – Live Online Recital

Wednesday 16 June, 7.00pm

C.P.E. Bach – Fantasia in C major Wq.59 No.6
Mozart – Rondo in D major K.485
Chopin – Nocturne in G minor Op.37 No.1
Schubert – Impromptu in C minor D. 899 No.1
Schubert – Impromptu in F minor D.935 No.4
F. Blumenfeld – Preludes Op.17: No.1 in C major & No.15 in D flat major
Scriabin – Prelude in B flat minor Op.37 No.1, Prelude in E flat minor Op.16 No.4, Mazurka in E minor Op.25 No. 3, Prelude Op.2 No.2 & Poème in D major Op.32 No.2
Medtner – Skazka (Fairy Tale) in G minor Op.48 No.2
Rachmaninov – Prelude in B flat major Op.23 No.2

 

“All of my programmes are structured according to the tonality of each piece. I do think that the key relations in any given recital programme are of the utmost importance. Preluding is a lost tradition which was largely prevalent in the 18th as well as the 19th century and which was the solution for programming pieces which had conflicting tonalities. One was expected to modulate to a closely related key of the following piece, usually the dominant.
My programmes usually include music by neglected composers. There is so much great music out there, especially the keyboard repertoire, and it is a real shame that we keep hearing the same pieces over and over again. I also find that programming shorter pieces is easier to follow. A single large-scale work is more than enough for a single sitting.
I do hope you enjoy the recital and also manage to hear something new.”

Another fascinating concert by this young Bosnian musician.A programme of rarely heard works from a C.P.E Bach Fantasia to the rousing B flat Prelude op 23 by Rachmaninov.There was a range of sounds and colours in the C.P.E. Bach, played in an almost improvisatory way – in fact a true Fantasia where his natural technical command and intelligent musicianship were immediately put at the service of this rarely heard work.It was a true re-creation and was the hallmark of all the works that he presented in a very carefully thought out programme where the key relationships were very sensitively chosen to give an overall shape to the whole recital.His natural hand movements too were of a true artist,moulding the sounds not only audibly but also visibly and gave such a natural sense of phrasing and ease of execution.A pianist who thinks before he plays is a pianist to be reckoned with indeed but a pianist who actually plays not vertically but horizontally is even more of a rarity.The improvised link between the Bach and Mozart was so tastefully done that it was hard to know where one finished and the other began.Of course that was the reason,as he explained in his very interesting and informed conversation with me afterwards.The ornamentation in the Mozart just added to the exquisite charm and character of this much maligned gem.

It was the presence of Robert Levin at the Menuhin school and his studies of Fortepiano that aroused his interest in historic performance practices,as he described in the fascinating after concert conversation.The Chopin nocturne was not only given a magical performance but,rather more controversially,he even added a re-touch to Chopin’s own lavish bel canto as the delicate flourish at the end just added to the magic created.However as he suggested later this practice might have jury members of an International competition fighting amongst themselves.

The first and last of Schubert’s Impromptu’s D.899 and D. 935 just showed what an intelligent and sensitive musician he is.Playing or more precisely interpreting exactly what Schubert wrote.A scrupulous attention to the very detailed indications in the first Impromptu just reminded me of the first time I heard Damir in a lunchtime recital at St James’s Piccadilly.The big A major Sonata D.959 was given a performance where ever detail was incorporated into an architectural shape that just made one long for more – Schubert’s heavenly length fully justified in his poetic hands.- I have written about it below and he has since gone on to record the work on a commercial CD.

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.wordpress.com/2020/09/16/damir-durmanovic-at-st-jamess-a-poet-speaks/

Although his scrupulous study of performance practices are quite unique in a pianist of his stature it does not exclude a sense of freedom and character.If anything this very knowledge gives him even more freedom!The last Impromptu in F minor was given a frenzied impassioned full blooded performance of Serkin or Annie Fischer proportions.His teacher Dmitri Alexeev is not an intellectual as Brendel of Serkin but has a magnificent sense of style and is one of the great pianists of our time.Damir has managed to incorporate both the knowledge of Robert Levin with the instinctive natural artistry of Alexeev and it is immediately apparent from his playing of such colour of fire and imagination.It was even more apparent in the short pieces by Scriabin that were played with the same ravishing sense of colour and freedom as Alexeev.Dmitri Alexeev has just recorded the complete works of Scriabin so it was very interesting to see the eclectic choice that Damir displayed today.

The two preludes op 17 by Blumenfeld were a real rarity.Even Horowitz who was a pupil of Blumenfeld never programmed any of his music.Damir has made a survey of the works of Blumenfeld and found some real masterpieces amongst his large output.The two beautiful preludes chosen for today’s programme we’re just a taste of the magnificent 24 preludes that he is recording.Adding a missing link to the CD catalogue which is sadly lacking many beautiful but rare works that are still waiting to be discovered by pioneers like Damir.The same curiosity and passion as Mark Viner with Alkan and Thalberg or Tyler Hay with Kalkbrenner,Damir will add Blumenfeld.Mark Viner tells me that he too has just recorded the Blumenfeld preludes op 17 and that Horowitz had played six of them in the late 20’s or 30’s in a celebration concert in Ukraine for his teacher.This was,of course before he took Paris by storm and conquered the world.Before the famous critic that irritated Artur Rubinstein :’The greatest pianist alive or dead!’I am proud to say that all three are KCT artists and what a mine of information they are!

A magical fairy tale by Medtner,another rarely heard work , although Medtner did record nearly all of his own works but they still have to be fully understood .He died in England in the early 50’s where he had fled in poverty and was much helped by his student friend Edna Iles.He is buried in Hendon cemetery.

Ending with Rachmaninov’s rousing B flat Prelude op 23 Damir just showed us his fiery temperament and astonishing technical ease with a performance of ravishing grandeur and scintillating excitement.

In a private conversation Damir confided that whilst he works at his career he intends to enter the world of investments of which he has become quite an expert in cyber currency.Subsidising his studies rather than compromise his artistry to fit into a conventional mould.An extraordinary artist and personality and someone to watch out for and that the KCT can proudly bring to the attention of a larger public.

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.wordpress.com/2021/05/25/damir-durmanovic-a-new-star-shining-brightly-at-st-marys/

Introduction and post-recital interview with Christopher Axworthy, Co-Artistic Director and Trustee of the Keyboard Charitable Trust.

DAMIR DURMANOVIC As an internationally sought-after performer, Damir Durmanovic has performed in venues and festivals including the Wigmore Hall, Champs Hill Studios, YPF Festival Amsterdam, Wimbledon Music Festival, Renia Sofia Audotorium Madrid, Gstaad Menuhin Festival, Derby Multifaith Center, Flusserei Flums, ‘Ballenlager’ Vaduz. He has won prizes in numerous international competitions including The Beethoven Intercollegiate Junior Competition in London, Adilia Alieva International Piano Competition in Geneva and Isidor Bajic International Piano Competition in Novi Sad. He has performed in masterclasses with Claudio Martinez-Mehner, Dmitri Bashkirov, Pascal Devoyon, Jacques Rouvier, Robert Levin, Jean-Bernard Pommier, Tatyana Sarkisova, and chamber ensembles such as the Emerson Quartet. Damir is also a scholar at the ‘Musikakademie Liechtestein’ and regularly participates in the courses organised by the academy. Damir began his studies at age of eight in his home country, Bosnia and Herzegovina, with Maja Azabagic before continuing his studies at the Yehudi Menuhin School where he studied with professor Marcel Baudet. Damir is an ABRSM scholar and is kindly supported by the Talent Unlimited Scheme. He is currently studying at the Royal College of Music in London with professor Dmitri Alexeev.

Here is your free link to watch the concert, which comes from Steinway Hall, London: https://youtu.be/XtTH6Qd_-ZI

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for Young Professional Performers

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LISZT Sonata S.178

SCRIABIN Valse Op.38

PROKOFIEV Six pieces from ‘Cinderella’ Op.102:

Waltz: Cinderella and the Prince :Cinderella’s Variation :Quarrel:Waltz: Cinderella Goes to the Ball :Pas de Chale :Amoroso.

Recorded on the 9th June in the first collaboration with Bluthner piano centre in London on a truly magnificent concert Bluthner.It will be streamed live on the 14th July via the Keyboard Trust web site

Liszt noted on the sonata’s manuscript that it was completed on February 2, 1853,but he had composed an earlier version by 1849.The Sonata was dedicated to Schumann, in return for Schumann’s dedication of his Fantasie op 17 (published 1839) to Liszt which was his contribution to the monument of Beethoven in Bonn that Liszt had undertaken to organise.A copy of the work arrived at Schumann’s house in May 1854, after he had entered Endenich sanatorium. Schumann’s wife Clara did not perform the Sonata as she found it “merely a blind noise”.The Sonata was published by Breitkopf & Härtel in 1854 and first performed on January 27, 1857 in Berlin by Hans von Bulow – Liszt’s son in law .It was attacked by the noted critic Eduard Hanslick who said “anyone who has heard it and finds it beautiful is beyond help”.Brahms reputedly fell asleep when Liszt performed the work in 1853.However, the Sonata drew enthusiasm from Wagner also Liszt’s son in law,Cosima having left von Bulow for Wagner.He heard it in a private performance by Karl Klindworth on April 5, 1855.It took a long time for the Sonata to become commonplace in concert repertoire, because of its technical difficulty and its status as “new” music.

I had heard Nikita a month ago in a memorable recital at that Mecca for great young talent that is St Mary’s Perivale .A Prokofiev that sang with such colour,shape and style.Not even that had prepared me for this extraordinary performance of the Liszt Sonata that he played in his New Artists recital for the Keyboard Trust.I never thought I would ever re live the emotions of hearing Guido Agosti intoning and playing such a masterpiece in his studio in Siena and in Rome.I have heard some memorable performances from above all Curzon with his scrupulous attention to detail ,the sheer grandiose exhilaration of Gilels,the visionary Richter ,the oracle that was Arrau and even Cherkassky whose London performance was praised by Peter Stadlen as the greatest performance since pre war Horowitz.But here today we were with a young man of extreme modesty who had asked me if I thought Leslie Howard might discuss some elements of the sonata with him so he could delve even deeper into a score that Leslie knows better than anyone alive ….or dead!I was overwhelmed by a performance where usually I am looking at my watch as one rhetorical phrase follows another without any regard to the very precise dynamic markings.Usually even more disturbed by a pulse that is continually interrupted to allow showmanship or heart on sleeve emotions.Liszt only writes fff two or three times in the whole sonata at crucial points of arrival as indeed ppp is only rarely used at moments of extreme delicacy or closure.Just in the last few pages we have indications of Presto.Prestissimo,Andante sostenuto,Allegro moderato and Lento assai but there should be a forward pulse that cannot allow for sentimentality.All this was scrupulously noted by Nikita but also with a sense of colour and delicacy that allowed him in some passages to split the left hand from the right for a split second that is the secret of great pianists in their search for the perfect legato on an instrument that only has hammers and strings!I have never been so enthralled as with the final three chords that seemed to disappear into infinity with a sensitivity to sound that was quite extraordinary.The final deep bass note almost inaudible as it had been at the opening.’p’,sotto voce Liszt asks at the opening as Nikita allowed the ominous whispered bass notes to cast their spell .The Allegro energico just growing out of this in such a natural unforced way as these three motives were expounded before they are transformed and elaborated in a way that was to influence Wagner soon after in their search for form, helped by transformation.There was a clarity to Nikita’s playing that was just as I remember from Agosti or Curzon where every detail could be heard so clearly adding to the emotional drive that is in this work from the first to the last note.There were so many memorable things that I could describe from the first Grandioso dissolving so naturally into the dolce con grazia .The forward movement of the cantando espressivo and the absolute clarity of what it led to .The excitement of the fortissimo that follows but with syncopated chords that for once we’re so clear and just added to the excitement without any pianistic distortions.A slight misreading of the marcato after the recitativo had me wondering if it was indeed a misreading or a deliberate choice to miss out the odd two quavers The three chords before the Andante sostenuto were as miraculous as the final three chords I have already spoken about .The Quasi Adagio,that in Richter’s hands lasted a miraculous eternity,were here played with such aristocratic sentiment but with an underlying forward movement that was the absolute hallmark that I remember of Agosti’s playing.The great throbbing chords in which passions are aroused was a miracle of control and brought us so emotionally to a climax which Liszt does infact mark fff.The allegro energico fugato was played with such refined dynamics that made the build up ever more exciting as more crescendo is asked for as we arrive at the recapitulation of the sonata form that Liszt still uses as a base.It was here that Gilels was unforgettable in his grandiose explosion of sound.Nikita may not have the personality yet of the great virtuosi but he does have something extra special which is the ability to look at the score with an intelligence and freshness away from tradition.With a fearless technical mastery that seems to know no difficulties one is reminded of Serkin’s comment on meeting the young Murray Perahia.’You told me he was good.But you did not tell me HOW good!

Aleksandr Scriabin wrote his Valse for solo piano Op. 38, in 1903, which was a particularly fruitful year in his production and it was published a year later.It is easy to see why Alexander Scriabin was known as “the Russian Chopin” as he wrote almost exclusively for the piano and began his career by composing mazurkas, waltzes, nocturnes, preludes and études. In this Valse we catch the composer near the end of his early Chopin period, before he started writing chords in 4ths rather than 3rds.It is a memory of a distant past and a magic box of sounds opening slowly, the intensifying, blinding light emitting from inside sets the universe ablaze just to vanish again at the end, leaving but a delicate taste.There is a feminine coyness and delicacy in many passages, with achingly nostalgic chromatic harmonies alternating with a more red-blooded and masculine ‘grand style’ of piano-playing that exploits the full range of the keyboard.This is a waltz that has a freedom of perfumed ecstasy with explosive outbursts of passion.A psychedelic waltz that is just a taste of what is yet to come from Scriabin ‘s multicoloured palette .Such sumptuous sounds in Nikita’s hands but what passion both restrained and fearless with a wonderful sense of improvised freedom.A jeux perlé of a different era,that of the greatest pianists who could astonish not with speed and volume but with their ravishing colours and seeming natural pianistic ease .Cherkassky or Moiseiwitch come to mind.

I had heard his magnificent Prokofiev only a month ago and have written in detail about it here: https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.wordpress.com/2021/05/04/nikita-lukinov-at-st-marys-no-pumpkins-just-the-magic-of-music-making-at-its-finest/

Nikita Lukinov was born in Russia in 1998. In 2005 he started studying at Voronezh Central Music School with Svetlana Semenkova, an alumna of Dmitry Bashkirov. Nikita’s first success was a Grand-Prix at the 2010 International Shostakovich Piano Competition for Youth (Moscow). Nikita’s debut with a symphonic orchestra was at the age of 11. Other achievements include 1^st place in the Inter-Russian piano competition for young pianists, the Diploma in the International Television Competition for young musicians – “Nutcracker”, 1^st place in the Inter-Russian Concerto competition, where he performed a Chopin’s Piano Concerto No.1 Op.11 with on orchestra at the age of 14.After studying in Russia, Nikita moved to London to continue his studies at the Purcell School for Young Musicians . Nikita had a full scholarship to study there, where his musicianship was cultivated by Tatiana Sarkissova, also a Dmitry Bashkirov alumna. While studying at the Purcell School Nikita had his Kings Place and Wigmore Hall debuts – and he also won The Purcell School Concerto Competition. He performed Prokofiev Concerto No.1 Op.10 and Mozart Concerto No.15 K.450 with the Purcell School Orchestra at the age of 15.nNikita has been fortunate to gain numerous concert opportunities at prestigious venues across the UK and outside, such as St. Martin in the Fields, Wigmore Hall (London), Kings Place (London), Fazioli Hall (Italy), The Small Hall of Moscow Conservatory and St. Petersburg Music House. So far Nikita has had masterclasses with Maestri Dmitry Bashkirov, Dmitry Alexeev, Andrzej Jasiński, Roy Howath, J-F. Bavouzet, Steven Osborne, Olga Kern, Vladimir Viardo, Dang Thai Son, Noriko Ogawa, Aaron Shorr, Kirill Gerstein, Boris Slutsky and Yaron Kohlberg .Nikita has received personal scholarships from Voronezh’s State Government “For Outstanding Cultural Achievements”, “Russian Children’s Foundation” and an international charity foundation “New Names”. Nikita also received a personal scholarship from the National Artist of Russia V. Ovchinnikov. He also received a scholarship from the International Academy of Music in Liechtenstein and participated in the Intensive Music Weeks and activities offered by the Academy in 2020. Nikita was invited for participation at the Verbier Music Academy 2020.Since September 2017 Nikita has been studying at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland on a full scholarship with Petras Geniušas.

Tuesday 15 June 4.00 pm 

Luke Jones (piano)

From the luminosity of one of Bach’s loveliest creations through the astonishing pyrotechnics of Feinberg’s revisitation of Tchaikowsky.
And from the depths of creation scaling the pinnacle of the piano repertoire with Liszt’s mighty B minor sonata even a robust northern ‘lad’ was visibly drained after some towering performances in which his youthful passion and virtuosity were stretched to the limit.

Here is the review of the same programme that he performed a month ago https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.wordpress.com/2021/05/19/luke-jones-for-cranleigh-arts-simplicityintelligence-and-virtuosity/

Bach: French Suite No.5 in G BWV 816
Allemande / Courante / Sarabande
Gavotte / Bourree / Loure /Gigue

Feinberg/Tchaikovsky: Scherzo from Symphony no 6

Liszt: Sonata in B minor S 178
(single movement)

Well done Luke – a wonderful recital. Here is the HD link https://youtu.be/ki1auZAHHnw

Luke Jones is a Welsh pianist. Originally from Wrexham in North Wales, he started playing the piano at the age of 5 and made his debut recital at Oriel Wrecsam aged 10. Since then he has performed all over Britain in venues such as Bridgewater Hall – Manchester, Eaton Square – London, St. David’s Hall – Cardiff, Bradshaw Hall – Birmingham, Pump Room – Bath, St. George’s – Bristol etc. He has also performed in France (Salle Cortot – Paris), Italy, Luxembourg (Philharmonie de Luxembourg), Austria (Wienersaal – Salzburg), Spain (Palau de la Musica Catalana – Barcelona), Majorca and Slovenia and has won prizes in competitions around Europe notably 2nd Prize and Mompou Prize at the prestigious Maria Canals International Piano Competition, 1st Prize at the Bromsgrove International Musicians Competition, 1st Prize in “Aci Bertoncelj” International Piano Competition, Slovenia. 1st Prize in “Section A” Chopin-Roma International Piano Competition, Italy, and 3rd Prize in the Manchester International Concerto Competition, UK. Most recently, Luke was awarded the RNCM Gold Medal, the college’s highest award for Performance. Furthermore, he has had broadcasts of his performances on BBC Wales Radio, S4C Television, Radio Vaticana and Telepace in Italy. He has performed with orchestras such as BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Manchester Camerata, Orchestra of the Swan and Jove Orquestra Nacional de Catalunya. At the age of 5 he studied with Eva Warren, and then at the age of 8 began studying with concert pianist Andrew Wilde. Subsequently at the age of 11 he was awarded a place at Chetham’s School of Music where he studied under the Head of Keyboard, Murray McLachlan from 2006-2013. Between 2013-2015 he studied at Conservatorio di Musica ‘Lorenzo Perosi’ Campobasso under the guidance of Mº Carlo Grante. He recently completed a bachelor’s degree with First Class Honours at the RNCM and is continuing his studies there on the Masters’ Programme with a full scholarship from the ABRSM under the tutelage of Dina Parakhina.Luke has been fortunate to have had masterclasses/lessons with notable pianists such as Kathryn Stott, Leslie Howard, Vladimir Tropp, Jean-Efflam Bavouzet, Bernard Roberts, Hamish Milne, Peter Donohoe, Stephen Hough, Llyr Williams, David Wilde and Philippe Cassard.

György Pauk 
in conversation

The eminent violinist talks about his long and distinguished career

with extracts from some of his recordings of Mozart,Bartok,Lutoslawski

Fascinating conversation with the much loved legendary violinist GYORGY PAUK .Hungarian born but British and proud of it.From the first time he and his wife arrived as political refugees from Hungary via Paris and Amsterdam and looking across Waterloo Bridge thought at last we have arrived home.A moving story all written about in his autobiography that like the great and gentle man he is , all proceeds go to helping young musicians

Here is the HD link to Gyorgy Pauk’s account of his extraordinary life. https://youtu.be/U_CAN3Tx-Zs

Born in Budapest in 1936, György Pauk suffered the loss of both his parents in the Holocaust.

He spent the remaining years of the Second World War in the care of his grandmother in the spartan confines of the Budapest Ghetto.

Showing extraordinary musical talent from an early age, he began to learn the violin and was admitted to the Liszt Academy at the age of only 13.

After winning several international violin competitions, Pauk defected from Soviet-controlled Hungary, claiming asylum in Paris and becoming a ‘stateless person’ at the age of 22.

He met and married his young Hungarian wife in Amsterdam.

The couple moved to London on the advice of Yehudi Menuhin, gaining British citizenship in 1967. Over the course of more than 50 years, György Pauk became an internationally acclaimed concert violinist, appearing worldwide with the leading orchestras and conductors, and making countless broadcasts and recordings.

Now in his ninth decade, he is a renowned pedagogue based in London, and regarded as the foremost living ‘torch-bearer’ of the Hungarian Violin School, which traces its origins to the 19th century violinist, Josef Joachim.

György Pauk’s memoirs have been published in Hungarian and are now available in an English translation. Copies can be purchased via this link https://www.thestradshop.com/store/thestrad/gyorgy-pauk/ at a price of £15 plus p&p. Signed copies are available for £25 plus p&p via this link. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/304021322002 . All proceeds go directly to support young musicians.

LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN
Bonn 1770 – Vienna 1827

SONATA n. 16 in sol maggiore op. 31 n. 1 (1801-1802)

1. Allegro vivace
2. Adagio grazioso 
3. Rondò. Allegretto 

NIKOLAI KARLOVICH MEDTNER
Moscow 1880 – London 1951

from 2 Skazki (2 Fairy Tales) op. 20 (1910)
n. 1 Allegro con espressione

from Zabýtye molítvy (Forgotten Mélodies) op. 38 (1919-22)
op. 38 n. 6 Canzona Serenata

KARLHEINZ STOCKHAUSEN
Kerpen 1928 – Kürten 2007

Klavierstück VII (1954)

MARCO STROPPA
Verona 1959

from Miniature estrose (Book 1 1991-2002) 
Birichino, come un furetto

FRANZ LISZT
Raiding 1811 – Bayreuth 1886

Réminiscences de Norma S. 394 (1841)

Interpreter
VANESSA BENELLI MOSELL piano

Recorded live
Boccherini Room
Palazzo Chigi Saracini, 15 May 2021.

Once again, the Accademia Chigiana hosts the young pianist Vanessa Benelli Mosell within the Micat Concerti in Vertice Season. This concerts is part of the Roll over Beethoven cycle, a project supported by the SIAE in 2019, which presents the chamber music of Ludwig van Beethoven interpreted by young talents, perfected at the Siena Academy. The program combines masterpieces of romantic and modern pianism, favoring the meeting of very different composers, but united by the same look towards the future and moved by the same spirit of innovation that made them approach the piano composition, each from their own historical and cultural context. There are nineteenth-century compositions represented by Beethoven, Medtner and Liszt, up to the present day with Stroppa, and passing through the twentieth century with Stockhausen, the author of which Vanessa Benelli Mosell is one of the leading interpreters.

The Italian pianist Vanessa Benelli Mosell is establishing herself as one of the most important names on the international music scene today for her technical virtuosity, her musical depth and expressive intensity of her pianism and her conducting style. Benelli Mosell’s charismatic artistic talent and natural leadership are quickly establishing her as one of the most interesting personalities of the new generation of young conductors. Combining raw power and boundless imagination, her electrifying musicality was heavily influenced by her mentors, Karlheinz Stockhausen and Yuri Bashmet. She is also appreciated for her knowledge of the most demanding and complex repertoires as well as her particular dedication to contemporary music.
Her recordings by Stockhausen and her recording debut with the London Philharmonic exclusively for Decca Classics have received universal acclaim from critics and audiences.

VANESSA BENELLI MOSELL, nata a Prato nel 1987, ha iniziato lo studio del pianoforte a tre anni. A sette anni è stata ammessa all’Accademia Pianistica Internazionale “Incontri col Maestro” di Imola, dove ha studiato con Franco Scala fino al 2006. A undici anni ha debuttato negli Stati Uniti presso il “92nd Street Y” di New York. Si è perfezionata con Joaquín Achúcarro presso l’Accademia Musicale Chigiana di Siena nel 2005 e 2006 e nel 2007 ha studiato al Conservatorio Čajkovskij di Mosca con Mikhail Voskresenskij. Si è laureata nel 2012 presso il Royal College of Music di Londra sotto la guida di Dmitrij Alekseev.
Vanessa Benelli Mosell ha suonato in prestigiose sale da concerto, tra le quali Berliner Philharmonie, Auditorium di Radio France di Parigi, Beijing National Center for the Performing Arts, Kings Place di Londra e Teatro alla Scala di Milano, sia da solista sia in formazioni cameristiche al fianco di Renaud e Gautier Capuçon, V. Repin, M. Quarta, D. Kashimoto, J. Rachlin, R. Vlatković e del violoncellista francese Henri Demarquette.
Nei 7 album realizzati per l’etichetta discografica Decca Classics, rientra l’incisione dei Klavierstücke di Stockhausen, che l’hanno portata a collaborare a stretto contatto con l’autore e con eminenti compositori contemporanei fra i quali G. Benjamin, H. Dufourt, S. Gervasoni, M. Matalon e M. Stroppa.
In qualità di direttrice d’orchestra ha lavorato con la Wiener Kammer Orchester e il Divertimento Ensemble di Milano.

A programme of Beethoven,Medtner,Stockhausen,Stroppa and Liszt for the Chigiana’s series of concerts under the title ‘Roll over Beethoven ‘for young interpreters that have perfected their studies in the famous Academy founded by Count Chigi Saracini.It was in the 20’s and 30’s that many noble families opened up their family homes to the great musicians who were only too pleased to be their guests in their Palaces in Siena,Perugia or Aquila Horowitz,Rubinstein,Casals,Segovia,Cortot,Serkin,Busch were just some of the names of their illustrious guests .It is enough to look at the photos with dedications on the pianos of Count Chigi in Siena or Alba Buitoni in Perugia to realise how enlightened these noble families were to invite musicians who would otherwise have only rarely visited Italy on their worldwide concert tours.It was in 1968 that two young freshers at the Royal Academy hearing about the marvels of the Accademia in Siena took time during the Summer break to go and listen to the marvels that were talked about of Guido Agosti’s summer studio in Siena.Having inherited the class from Alfredo Casella in a period when Franco Ferrara,Segovia,Navarra,Gulli,Brengola and many other visiting artists including Casals and Cortot were giving summer Masterclasses in the magical city of Siena.In fact there is a photo of Cortot turning the pages for Guido Agosti who is accompanying his wife Lydia Stix Agosti.A real Mecca for musicians that inspired these two freshers who thought they would get the sack from the RAM in London for daring to seek out other sources of musical inspiration.When they got back to London they were very surprised to find that not only was their secret out but that they had been awarded the Tobias Matthay Fellowship to help towards the cost of their wondrous adventure.One of them went on ten years later to meet his future wife in Siena whilst accompanying the class of Agosti’s wife.He even went on to create a theatre in Rome with his wife the illustrious Ileana Ghione that inspired by Count Chigi’s example became a Mecca for all the musicians denied a space in the Eternal City.Teatro Ghione was the much loved home, like the Wigmore Hall is in London today,for the 30 years that Rome was denied the magnificent concert halls of Renzo Piano.It became loved home to Agosti,Perlemuter,Nikolaeva Tureck,Tortelier,Ricci,Cherkassky Fou Ts’ong and above all it was Stockhausen’s favourite theatre.It is nice to be reminded of our great friend reading that Vanessa was his last student and that she has recorded all his Klavierstucke.I am very happy to read also that Vanessa had passed several summers in Siena in the class of the highly esteemed Joaquin Achucarro (who incidentally was the solist in the very first orchestral concert that I attended at the Festival Hall in London.)

It was indeed her Beethoven that shone out with a sparkling light as she had said it would in her opening interview.A Beethoven full of contrasts and rhythmic playfulness that she played with scrupulous attention to Beethoven’s very precise indications.A beautifully poised Adagio grazioso that is a truly inspired bel canto that she played with superb legato with the lightly staccato accompaniment beautifully judged.The slightly menacing middle section was maybe a little too aggressive where the indications are only forte-piano not sforzando in a Sonata that has very little of Beethoven’s usual aggressive contrasts but is full of a ‘joie de vivre’that was rarely the world which he inhabited.The Allegretto was played with great brilliance and rhythmic drive and in fact Beethoven does not add the grazioso that is it’s true character.Vanessa is a superb pianist and a very fine intelligent musician and to see her at the piano is like watching the water nymphs in Copenhagen.Her actual movements on the keys though do not mould the sounds naturally like a sculptor or painter with a brush and palette of colours.She has a technical perfection that with her superb intelligent musicianship shapes the music with great architectural arches and rhythmic precision but this lack of natural movement sometimes does not allow her the mellow shaping of a singer having to breathe.It may also be the magnificent Fazioli that has a very bright sound that gave a little too many Beethovenian contrast in a sonata that is ,unusually,all radiance and light.The two works by Medtner were magnificently played and her superb temperament and technical control together with a sense of colour really brought these two rarely played works to life.As Vanessa said in her interview she tries to contrast well known works with lesser known ones as she did today.It was fascinating to hear the Klavierstuck VII and the contemporary work by Stroppa which were like a breath of fresh air between Beethoven and Liszt. I was reminded of Rubinstein who would add four mazurkas by Szymanowski to his all Chopin recitals saying that it was like a lemon sorbet after a rich meal that just whet your appetite for more! The Stockhausen and Stroppa were superbly played most notably without the score too.She had really digested these works with the same intelligence and superb technical control that were a hallmark of everything she played.

Stockhausen loved my theatre in Rome and he loved playing with the lighting and sound from the back of the hall.His 12 Klavierstucke we’re on the programme one year played by a young German pianist and also his daughter.The organisers had hired a Yamaha piano but Stockhausen seeing the Steinway ‘D’ in a corner begged me to be able to use that instead.Of course Mr Stockhausen but you must reassure me that it will only be played with two hands and two feet in the conventional manner!Well he ‘almost’ kept his word ,but in the last Klavierstuck his daughter started to sit on the keys as she fired toy missiles into the public!The missiles were another story as he had just performed the same concert in Palermo and the missiles were not returned by an excited public only too happy to have a memento of such an occasion.’Chris’ what shall we do ,exclaimed the Maestro.Show me one and we will see what can be done.He luckily had saved one and I showed it to our stage technician who during the day set about making a dozen missiles.’What are you making’ the actors passing under the stage would ask.’Missiles for Maestro Stockhausen’ was Castelli’s innocent reply.The concert was a great success and a few weeks later I got a big packet in the post from Kurten.The address written in red .It was a couple of signed prints from Stockhausen that now hang in the most frequented room in my house! A heart shape to which was added ……..dially Stockhausen!It was the Liszt Norma Fantasy or more precisely reminiscences of Norma that showed off to the full the superb artistry of Vanessa.Sumptuous sounds,cascades of notes but above all a musicality that was of the magic world of Opera.Such tenderness,passion and excitement creating the unique world of Bellini’s wondrous world .

Tuesday 8 June 4.00 pm 

Beethoven: Piano sonata in F sharp Op 78

Chopin: Fantasy in F minor Op 49

Scriabin: 24 preludes Op 11

A terrific recital ! Here is the link https://youtu.be/mK4Rpow2nHg

What a family! Absolutely bowled over by the superb musicianship and subtle artistry of Matthew McLachlan having been ravished,seduced and astonished by his family in the past.
Matthew who is a guest in my house in Kew I often hear practicing but more often see jogging,boxing or training at the gym.I had no idea until hearing his public performance today of the heart that beats inside that seemingly simple exterior.A Beethoven played with a loving fluidity and sparkling cantabile that it is easy to imagine that the Countess Thérèse must have been his distant beloved.But such playful high jinks too in the Allegro vivace played with a true ‘joie de vivre.’
Chopin’s Fantasy played with a nobility and sensibility that is rare.Sound that is both full and at times heartbreakingly sensitive.But it was the Scriabin Preludes that showed off his Kaleidoscopic sense of colour with ravishing sounds that ranged from the fullest passionate outpourings to the almost inaudibly whispered.Reams of mellifluous notes that seemed like streams of gold and silver poured effortlessly from his fingers but with a strong personality that kept him on the high wire without ever fearing to fall .
The final passionate outpouring in D minor was enough as he closed the piano lid and made a charmingly modest thank you speech to Hugh Mather and Roger Nellist for all they do to give a platform to young artists like himself and his family.A deeply felt dedication to Donald Page -one of the best men he knew – just showed what sensitivity beats inside that ‘lad’ from Manchester.
So now they are five – the youngest by the way,the sixth,is a professional footballer but his father tells me when not saving goals even he plays a mean prelude and fugue.Bewitched ,bothered and bewildered.I am indeed amazed

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.wordpress.com/2021/02/21/murray-mclachlan-at-st-marys/

1. Adagio cantabile — Allegro ma non troppo
2. Allegro vivace

The Piano Sonata No. 24 in F sharp, Op. 78, nicknamed “à Thérèse” because it was written for his pupil Countess Thérèse von Brunswick who,with her sister Josephine was his pupil.According to her diary Beethoven had stronger feelings than just for her intellect and sisterly tenderness .For sometime it has been thought that the famous letters from Beethoven to his ‘distant beloved’ were indeed to her.Composed in 1809 and consisting of two movements:According to Czerny,Beethoven himself singled out this sonata and the ‘Appassionata’as favourites together later with the ‘Hammerklavier’Wagner found it ‘profoundly personal’ but D’Indy said :’What sort of artist or man could admit that the only work dedicated to the Countess of Brunswick is the insipid Sonata in F sharp,the same recipient of the passionate letters that all the world has read’

There was a beautiful naturally flowing tempo from the very first notes..A great sense of contrasts as his fluidity of sound was allied to a scrupulous attention to Beethoven’s intentions.There was a real ‘joie de vivre’ in the Allegro vivace as he playfully swept up and down the keyboard with jeux perlé,dynamic contrasts and Beethoven’s own pedalling giving such a brilliant sparkle to the innocence of this bagatelle.

The Chopin F minor Fantasy had such beauty of sound with the opening legato and staccato and tempo di marcia united to carry us forward on a magical journey indeed.It was played with great nobility and passion and the beautiful Lento sostenuto was filled with subtle colour and flexibility.A very subtle addition of a bass d flat on the justly triumphant final return of the main theme just gave more depth to the sound .It was his aristocratic holding back of the bass notes in the passionate build ups that was so thrilling.The long held pedal in the final Adagio sostenuto like in Ravel’s Ondine created a magic out of which wove a wave of sounds that took us to the final imperious chords.

Scriabin’s 24 preludes were modelled on Chopin’s 24 Preludes op 28: They also covered all 24 major and minor keys and follow the same key sequence: C major, A minor, G major, E minor, D major, B minor and so on, alternating major keys with their relative minors, and following the ascending circle of fifths .They were composed in the course of eight years between 1888–96,being also one of Scriabin’s first published works in 1897,in Leipzig, together with his 12 Études, Op. 8 (1894–95).It is considered an outstanding set among Scriabin’s early works.Here are one or two personal thoughts as the preludes unwove.

• No.1 in C major – Immediately entering into the special world of Scriabin with fluidity and passion.
• No. 2 in A minor – Allegretto -Beautifully nostalgic and wistful,played with beguiling luminous sounds of purity and clarity
• No. 3 in G major – Vivo -Flowing streams of notes like Chopin’s 8th prelude.
• No.4 in E minor – Lento -Beautiful left hand melodic line played with very subtle rubato and nobility of sound.
• No. 5 in D major – Andante cantabile- Languid melodic line played with subtle flexibility and shape with some magic bell like sounds at the end.
• No. 6 in B minor – Allegro -Passionate Chopinesque octaves in an outpouring of romantic sounds played with a great sense of grandeur.
• No. 7 in A major – Allegro assai-wistful melodic line on a stream of beautifully shaped fluid sounds.A wonderfully controlled passionate climax.
• No. 8 in F♯ minor – Allegro agitato-A meandering melodic melody over a rumbling bass disappearing to a mere whisper.
• No.9 in E major– Andantino-An almost improvised melodic line shaped so sensitively
• N0.10 in C sharp minor– Andante-Great beauty of the tenor melody with a magical accompaniment and ravishingly deep bass note to end.
• No. 11 in B major – Allegro assai -Such freedom allied to a sense of direction
• No. 12 in G♯ minor – Andante -Luminous sounds of great delicacy.
• No. 13 in G♭ major – Lento -beautiful melodic line with the left hand counterpoint just underlining the sentiment of the right.
• No. 14 in E♭ minor – Presto-Agitated passionate outpouring in constant movement.
• No. 15 in D♭ major – Lento – A beautiful left hand solo played with sensitivity until the right hand enters with such clarity and radiance
• No. 16 in B♭ minor – Misterioso -as Matthew had said there is a similarity with Chopin’s Funeral March rhythm disguised in Scriabin’s clothes building to a sumptuous climax before melting to nothing.
• No. 17 in A♭ major – Allegretto-Scriabin’s melodic invention seems quite endless.
• No. 18 in F minor – Allegro agitato-A passionate outpouring to the final chord
• No. 19 in E♭ major – Affettuoso- Beautiful mellifluous outpouring of sumptuous sounds
• No. 20 in C minor – Appassionato-A melodic line in octaves with an ever more passionate outpouring of subtle colouring to it’s magical ending.
• No. 21 in B♭ major – Andante-Capricious meanderings with such flexibility and beauty.
• No. 22 in G minor – Lento -Deeply melancholic.
• No. 23 in F major – Vivo- The same liquid flow as Chopin’s penultimate prelude with the ending just thrown off.
• No. 24 in D minor – Presto-The final passionate outpouring of repeated chords played with fluidity and passion .It brought this multi coloured performance to a tumultuous end.The only thing to do after a performance like that is to shut the piano and pray that when it is reopened some of today’s magic might still be in the air !

Matthew McLachlan was born in 2000 and started piano lessons with his father in 2008. At 11 years of age he passed grade 8 and entered Wells Cathedral School as a specialist musician, studying with John Byrne. After two years in Somerset he entered Chetham’s in Manchester where he studied piano with Dina Parakhina and Cello with Gill Thoday. After gaining the ATCL and LTCL recital diplomas with distinction in 2014 and 2015, Matthew was awarded the FTCL in 2016. This followed on from winning third prize in the senior division of the first Scottish International Youth Prize Competition, held at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland in July 2016. In 2014 Matthew’s performance of Ravel’s G Major Piano Concerto was commended in the Chetham’s Concerto competition and in the same year he was a prizewinner at the 2014 Mazovia Chopin Festival in Poland. As a result of his performance in Mazovia, he was selected to perform a 60-minute solo recital at the 2015 World Piano Teachers’ Conference (WPTC) in Novi Sad, Serbia. In 2016 Matthew gave many recitals and was a finalist in the Chetham’s Beethoven Piano Competition for the second year running. In March 2017 he was awarded first prize in the Chetham’s Senior Bach competition. In August 2017 he performed Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto no. 1 in the Paderewski Festival in Poland. In Autumn 2017 he had a tour of concert performances featuring Brahms’ Sonata no. 1 in C major. Before leaving Chetham’s, Matthew won the school’s Bosendorfer competition, playing Stravinsky’s ‘Three movements from Petrushka’. In 2018 he performed Mozart’s 13th concerto in Trieste, Haddington and Rhyl as well as Tchaikovsky’s first and Beethoven’s fourth concerto in Buxton with the orchestra of the High Peak. In the winter of 2018, the Knights of The Round Table awarded Matthew with a full scholarship at the Royal College of Music in London, where he now studies. Although 2020 saw many concerts cancelled, Matthew gave online performances and has recently been taken under the wing of Talent Unlimited, thanks to Canan Maxton.

This is the video link recorded in Bucharest on the 3rd June 2021 https://youtu.be/jC2cdL1dRXon

https://www.cristiansandrin.com/

The Piano Concerto No. 25 in C major K.503, was completed by Mozart on December 4, 1786, alongside the Prague Symphony K. 504. Although two more concertos would later follow, K 537 and K 595,this work is the last of what are considered the twelve great piano concertos written in Vienna between 1784 and 1786.Widely recognized as “one of Mozart’s greatest masterpieces in the concerto genre.”Though Mozart performed it on several occasions, it was not performed again in Vienna until after his death, and it only gained acceptance in the standard repertoire in the later part of the twentieth century.

It is in fact one of Mozart’s noblest concertos where Mozart’s sublime musical invention just seems to overflow as one wondrous melody follows another.

The Allegro maestoso seemed at first rather fast even though the distinguished conductor Christian Badea directed with such authority and rhythmic precision.But as soon as the soloist entered with such disarming purity,just a simple strand of comment and the the music found its own tempo with crystal clear scales like reams of quicksilver of such delicacy and sensibility.The constant change between major and minor was superbly understood where almost unnoticeable inflections and hesitations just made the music speak with the aristocratic nobility that was very much Serkin’s.There was a magical interplay between soloist and orchestra of real chamber music proportions especially in the development where the question and answer was absolutely mesmerising.There was a purity of sound from the piano with trills that seemed like jewels and a beauty of sound even in the noblest of comments.The cadenza by Alfred Brendel was of a simplicity and of such style that even the orchestra were captivated.

The sublime Andante was played with disarming simplicity together with wistful playfulness where the orchestra and soloist were playing as one. Listening attentively under the expert guidance of Christian Badea who was overseeing this chamber music performance with complete understanding and allowing the music to unfold so naturally.There were some very delicate embellishments that Cristian added with such good taste and sense of style that it just added to the intensity of emotion in this extraordinarily poignant movement.Adding very discreetly a deep bass note that just added to the radiance and luminosity of the melodic line.The final scale from the pianist was so delicately and finely judged that it just seemed to disappear into infinity.

The Allegretto seemed again very fast but it was ,as in the first movement so finely judged that as the piano entered it seemed so right. Cristian’s fleeting fingers played with such feather like agility as they seemed to dust the keys ready for the continuous interruption of melodic invention that like Schubert seems to know no limit.Delicately embellished rondo on each return just added to the scintillating beauty of this movement.

A standing ovation from the socially spaced audience was offered an encore of Ravel’s Une barque sur l’océan of scintillating colour and superb control.This magical piece from Miroirs just seemed to pour fromCristian’s fingers with the same natural musicianship that had been so rewarding in the Mozart Concerto.An aristocratic musicianship that shows a maturity way beyond his youthful and reticent appearance.

Christian Badea (né Cristian Badea) is a Romanian-American opera and symphonic conductor.A native of Bucharest ,Romania , Badea’s early training was as a classical violinist in Bucharest and Brussels. He later studied conducting at the Juilliard School of Music in New York.After winning the Rupert Conducting Competition in London (1976) he was invited by Gian Carlo Menotti to conduct at the Festival Dei Due Mondi di Spoleto and right after he is appointed musical director of the Italian edition of the festival, and later on in a similar position for the American edition. In the next decade he conducts at Spoleto and at Charleston a series of operas which will establish him a reputation: Menotti’s Maria Golovin, The Last Savage and The Saint of Bleecker Street, and also Shostakovich’s Lady Macbeth from Mtsensk and Samuel Barber’s Antony and Cleopatra to great acclaim. His recording of Samuel Barber’s opera Antony and Cleopatra received a Grammy in 1985.In 1983 he was appointed artistic director of the Columbus Symphony Orchestra in Columbus, Ohio. During his nine-year tenure here he records two discs with the music of Roger Sessions and Peter Mennin praised by the musical critics.He made his debut with The Metropolitan Opera in NewYork on tour at Boston in 1986 conducting Tosca with Grace Bumbry. During the next decade, until 1995, Christian Badea performed as conductor for 167 times, in a repertoire including: Tosca, Aida, La traviata, Cavalleria rusticana, Pagliacci, Boris Godunov, La bohème, Don Giovanni, La fanciulla del West, Madama Butterfly, Rigoletto. In 1990 he conducted the Metropolitan Gala opening the season with La bohème, the cast including Plácido Domingo and Mirella Freni.At Wiener Staatsoper he performed as a conductor for 19 times between 1992 and 1995 in operas like Tosca, Aida, Le contes d’Hoffmann, Otello and La bohème. The most notable of these was the premiere of Les contes d’Hoffmann in 1993, staged by Andrei Serbian and with a cast including Plácido Domingo, Natalie Dessay, Barbara Frittoli and Bryn Terfel.He is regularly invited to the Royal Opera House Covent Garden with 32 appearances as conductor in La bohème, Tosca and Turandot.His opera career includes performances at Opéra de Lyon, Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie in Brussels, Dutch National Opera in Amsterdam, English National Opera, Royal Opera Copenhagen, Royal Opera Stockholm, Opera Australia, Arena di Verona, Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires, Budapest State Opera.In 2006 he starts to conduct in Romania, notably with the George Enescu Philharmonic Orchestra at the Romanian Athaeneum , one of the most notable moments being a semi staged concert of Parsifal, in the double role of conductor and stage director. In 2009 he opened the Enescu Festival in Bucharest with Haga Philharmonic Orchestra.As an orchestral conductor, Badea has performed in concert halls throughout Europe, North America, and Asia: Carnegie Hall (New York), Suntory Hall (Tokyo), Salle Pleyel (Paris), Concertgebouw (Amsterdam), conducting ensembles like Royal Philharmonic, BBC Symphony, Gothenburg Symphony, Czech Philharmonic, Sankt Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra, Residentie Orchestra, Amsterdam Philharmonic, Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, Orchestre Nationale de Lyon, Accademia di Santa Cecilia Orchestra (Roma), RAI Orchestra (Torino), Maggio Musicale Orchestra (Florence), Gulbenkian Orchestra (Lisabona) or Orquesta Nacional de Espana among others.

https://www.onjam.tv/cristian-sandrin/imogen-cooper-music-trust-presents-cristian-sandrin-piano-recital

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.wordpress.com/2021/04/12/cristian-sandrin-master-musician-at-st-marys/

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.wordpress.com/2020/10/13/cristian-sandrin-at-st-marys/

Joseph Vella Sonatina op 30

Sergei Rachmaninov Sonata in D minor op 28 Allegro molto-Lento-Allegro molto .

Video link to the concert :https://youtu.be/HF63Mfked-Yn

I was totally mesmerised by a performance from an artist that listens so carefully to every sound with a sense of balance and complete mastery that allowed him to give a towering performance of Pictures from an Exhibition.” CHRISTOPHER AXWORTHY (Jan 2021).

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.wordpress.com/2021/01/26/victor-maslov-the-birth-of-a-great-artist/

Once again I was mesmerised by Victor’s recent performances that show a mastery of sound and colour allied to his intelligent musicianship and passionate involvement.A Sonatina by Vella was enough to show immediately his control of sound and his sense of rhythmic energy as he plunged into this little known work with a conviction and involvement that was totally convincing .But is was in the first sonata by Rachmaninov that he showed off his total mastery.A sense of architecture and sumptuous sounds that transformed this long misunderstood work into a tone poem of quite extraordinary originality.The second sonata ,since Horowitz’s performances in the 80’s,has become part of the standard repertoire for aspiring young virtuosi. But the first has long been in it’s shadow and only now is being fully appreciated thanks to performances of the caliber of Alexandre Kantorow recently in Paris and now Victor Maslov in London.

The Sonatina op 30 by Joseph Vella was written in 1979 and premiered in 1983 in Malta by Margaret Cini .It is a short work of barely eight minutes divided into three movements.Very much influenced by Prokofiev starting with a spiky very busy fugato played with great clarity and rhythmic energy .It contrasted with the very expressive central movement of solitude and desperation,played with a beautiful sense of colour with a swirling accompaniment to the solo melodic line.The toccata type last movement with continual repeated notes was like Ravel’s Toccata from Le Tombeau.But on these notes floats a melodic line leading to a very atmospheric ending with solitary isolated notes similar to the opening coming to a gradual stop and creating a sense of unity.An effective piece by a Maltese composer of note and is one of the set pieces for the International Piano Competition in Malta in which Victor has been selected to take part.

Joseph Vella was a Maltese composer and conductor (1942 – 2018). Studied with his father, was admitted a Fellow of the London College of Music in 1967, graduated in music from the University of Durham, UK, and continued his studies with Franco Donadoni in Composition and Franco Ferrara in Conducting in Siena, Italy. In 1958 he composed an orchestral suite Three Mood Pieces op 4 (played at the Manoel Theatre, Valletta) which introduced him to the public as a composer. Together with Verena Maschat he set up the School of Music in Valletta in 1972. In 1994 he was appointed Associate Professor of Music at the University of Malta.

Piano Sonata No. 1 in D minor op .28, by Sergei Rachmaninov was completed in 1908.It is the first of three “Dresden pieces”, along with the 2nd Symphony and part of an opera, which were composed in Dresden.It was originally inspired by Goethe’s play Faust ; although Rachmaninov abandoned the idea soon after beginning composition, traces of this influence can still be found.After numerous revisions and substantial cuts made on the advice of his colleagues, he completed it on April 11, 1908. In November 1906, Rachmaninov, with his wife and daughter, moved to Dresden primarily to compose a second symphony to diffuse the critical failure of his first Symphony, but also to escape the distractions of Moscow.There they lived a quiet life, as he wrote in a letter, “We live here like hermits: we see nobody, we know nobody, and we go nowhere. I work a great deal,”but even without distraction he had considerable difficulty in composing his first piano sonata, especially concerning its form.

It was obvious from the deep brooding lament of the opening that there was already magic in the air as these haunting themes were revealed with such impressive aristocratic ease.They were rudely interrupted by cascades of notes that took us to the opening of the Sonata.These themes were to appear over and over again during the Sonata that gave a sense of architectural shape much as Liszt had done in his B minor sonata and one could appreciate the suffering that the search for a form must have cost the composer. There were cascades of notes that created sumptuous harmonies and colour in Victor’s sensitive hands.A work that has suffered from so called ‘virtuoso’ performances now has found an artist that can shape the notes into layers of sound and allow the contours to create an overall cohesive shape.The tenor melody in the Moderato with an accompaniment that just seemed to vibrate in perfect harmony was of ravishing beauty due to his very subtle sense of balance.Swirls of notes brought to a mellifluous climax ,all played with such sumptuous ease that one was never aware of the extraordinary technical difficulty.The haunting opening motif appearing always on the horizon.After and exciting build up ‘poco a poco crescendo e agitato’ a great outburst over enormous sonorities brought us once more to the melodic opening theme and a magical passage high up on the keyboard like bells in the distance as the movement came to a gradual peaceful end.A very atmospheric introduction in the Lento gave way to a typical Rachmaninov melody of nostalgic lament played with a wonderful sense of flexibility .It led to the più mosso before dissolving into a magical cadenza that led to the recapitulation and a pianissimo ending with the opening haunting theme raising it head yet again.An Allegro molto of great fury and passionate abandon was quite breathtaking and the rhythmic almost Schumannesque interruptions had some magical colours of ravishing beauty in the più mosso.It was only a short rest from the unrelenting rhythmic energy that Victor unleashed as he brought the movement to a brilliant close with the final triumphant chordal outpouring of the theme and the glittering final exultation of this quite extraordinary performance

Russian pianist Victor Maslov was praised as “one of those people who is close to all-round mastery of his repertoire” by the New York Concert Review, following his performance at Weill Recital Hall (Carnegie Hall), New York in 2010. Victor is currently studying at the Royal College of Music, London, with Prof. Dmitri Alexeev and Prof. Vanessa Latarche as a Ruth West Scholar. In 2017 he became an Eileen Rowe Musical Trust Award Holder. Victor began his studies at the Gnessin Moscow Special School of Music, where he was taught by his mother Olga Maslova. He later became a scholar of the Vladimir Spivakov International Charity Foundation and has received masterclasses from Dmitry Bashkirov for several years. Victor has been a prize winner in several international competitions, including First Prize at the Nikolai Rubinstein International Piano Competition (Paris 2004), Musicale dell’Adriatico (Ancona 2007), Overall Prize Winner of the 47th Concertino Praga International Radio Competition for Young Musicians (2013), Two times winner of Concerto Competition (Royal College of Music, 2015, 2018), and the First prize winner at the 2nd International Rachmaninoff Piano Competition (Moscow 2020). Additional prizes include Fourth Prize at the Vladimir Horowitz International Competition for Young Pianists (Kiev 2012), Second Prize at the Astana Piano Passion (Astana 2015), Second prize at Joan Chissell Schumann Prize (London 2019) and Third prize at the 6th Umanitaria Societa Competition (Milan 2019). He gave his concerto debut at the age of nine with the State Symphony Orchestra of Moscow and has since performed with orchestras such as RCM Symphony, RCM Philharmonic, Symphonic Orchestra of Czech Radio, Astana Opera Symphonic Orchestra, Kostroma Symphonic Orchestra, Penza State Symphonic Orchestra, State Orchestra “New Russia”. Victor has given solo performances at international music festivals across the UK, Germany, France, Italy, Denmark, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Turkey, Switzerland, Russia, Israel, and the USA. Venues have included Royal Festival Hall, Queen Elizabeth Hall, Weil Recital hall at Carnegie Hall, Elgar Room at the Royal Albert Hall, Cadogan Hall, Great Hall of Moscow Conservatoire, Smetana Hall and Rudolfinum.

The Keyboard Charitable Trust presents
Victor Maslov – Live Online Recital

“I was totally mesmerised by a performance from an artist that listens so carefully to every sound with a sense of balance and complete mastery that allowed him to give a towering performance of Pictures from an Exhibition.”
CHRISTOPHER AXWORTHY Co-Artistic Director, Keyboard TrustHere is your free link to watch the concert for the Keyboard Trust New Artists Concert Series broadcast on the 12th May recorded from St Matthew’s Church, Ealing:https://youtu.be/ZkoUrw_N9DE

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15 AUGUST – 4 SEPTEMBER 2021

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In 2021 the second grand edition of the “Classic Piano” Malta International Piano Competition will be held in the historic capital city of Valletta in an event which will bring together 70 extraordinary young performers from across the world in a spectacular display of musicality, tenacity and prodigious skill. Following preceding stages in Austria, USA, China, Israel, Japan, Italy, South Korea, Switzerland, UK, Belgium, Russia, Armenia and Germany as part of the “14 ways to Malta” International Piano Competition 2021, this final stage of the competition invites the top five ranked participants from each event to compete in Malta for a total prize fund of €300,000. The final stage of the competition will be held in four rounds with candidates required to perform a range of classical and contemporary repertoire including works by the event’s Composer-In-Residence, Alexey Shor. “Music is the universal language of mankind” – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow