ChristopherAxworthy-MusicCommentary

Some superb playing from a brother and sister team which was a real duo in the sense that they played as one. Playing from memory means that they are free to move and above all listen to each other and the overall sound that they are creating together. Superb pedalling whether from brother or sister ( because they swopped over for the piece by Choveaux) which was never smudged as their finger legato was so refined that the pedal was just used to add colour to their playing. It is a strange phenomenon how in this period, brother and sister teams have brought the piano duo back into the concert hall with nobility and pride, playing without the score, free to move together with the music ,as do the Jussen brothers in Holland or the Dallagnese sisters in Italy.

Mozart that was of crystal clarity with a rhythmic drive full of operatic character and a sense of freedom and joyous improvisation. Their mutual anticipation in the Andante brought a subtle shape to the ravishing beauty of a Bel Canto of simplicity and poignancy.The Allegretto was played with a ‘joie de vivre’ of radiance and brilliance even if the Rondo theme seemed a little hurried on its frequent return.

Val taking the top part in the Poème by Choveaux, written especially for them, but it was Zala that began with pungent bass chords before Val added cascades of notes where they both filled the piano with bell like sounds of Messiaenic pungency. Exploring the sonorities of the entire keyboard with great brilliance and nobility dying to a whisper of atmospheric beauty. Playing of masterly conviction and exhilarating urgency and radiance.

Schubert’s Fantasy in F minor was given a masterly performance of control and architectural understanding. Their superb sense of balance allowed the melodic line to be revealed with all its subtlety as they listened to each other whilst creating a unified whole. The Largo was played with a rhythmic precision that is rare but that never lost the sense of shape as it burst into spontaneous outpourings of beauty. The Scherzo was played as the dance it truly is, with a subtle give and take of grace and charm. The Trio could have been freer and more etherial but their sense of united rhythmic propulsion was quite remarkable. The mighty fugue was played with extraordinary clarity and rhythmic precision with their superb sense of balance that allowed the fugato theme to be revealed, covered in streams of notes of blistering energy. The return of the opening theme after such an overwhelming journey was one of those magic moments of perfectly coordinated hands and whispered beauty that were greeted by moments of silence as the audience were hypnotised by such an extraordinary performance .

The Peer Gynt Suite was played with extraordinary characterisation and sense of atmosphere . Morning Mood were waves of beautiful sounds as the solemn beauty of perfectly coordinated hands in The Death of Ase created a spell that was only broken by the capricious antics of Anitra’s Dance . What fun Val had leading the Mountain King with insinuating whispered antics that were gradually augmented by Zala’s authoritative entry building to a tumultuous climax only diffused by the false ending that Grieg writes into one of his best loved works

Originally from Slovenia but raised and educated in Luxembourg, Zala and her younger brother Val have performed since early childhood across Europe, as well as in China and the United States. They have excelled as soloists, including in performances with orchestras, as chamber musicians, and in piano four-hands and two-piano configurations. 

Their musical journey began at the Conservatory of the City of Luxembourg, where they earned multiple diplomas in piano performance, music theory, and piano four hands. They have won several national and international competitions for young musicians, but for several years, they have preferred focusing on public performances and recordings. As outstanding talents, they attracted the attention of distinguished mentors early in their careers. Zala studied under Maria João Pires and Louis Lortie at the Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel in Belgium, while Val trained with Jacques Rouvier at the Musica Mundi School in Belgium and Sylvia Thereza, former assistant to Pires. 

From 2019 to July 2025, Zala pursued her studies at the Royal College of Music in London, graduating in 2023 with a First-Class Bachelor’s degree and completing a two-year Master of Music in Performance (Keyboard) under Norma Fisher, with Distinction. Val earned a Bachelor’s degree in piano performance from the LUCA School of Arts in Belgium. Both are currently in their first year of a Master’s programme at the École Normale de Musique de Paris ‘Alfred Cortot’, specialising in piano four-hands and two-piano repertoire. 

In 2021, they recorded an album of piano four-hands music in Germany, following Zala’s debut solo album in 2017 at age fourteen. Both recordings feature iconic repertoire from various periods alongside original compositions written for them by contemporary Luxembourgish and French composers. These albums have garnered critical acclaim and media attention across multiple countries. 

 

 

The Sonata in C major for piano four-hands, K.521 was composed by Mozart  in 1787 and was his last complete piano duet sonata It is in three movements: 

Allegro, Andante and Allegretto.The autograph manuscript of the sonata is preserved in the Fitzwilliam Museum,Cambridge. 

In Mozart’s thematic catalog, (Köchel) the piece was dated May 29, 1787. On that same day, he also received word of his father’s death. Mozart then shared the sad news with his close friend Gottfried von Jacquin, a Viennese court official and amateur musician, and subsequently dedicated the piece to Gottfried’s sister, Franziska von Jacquin. In Mozart’s letter to Gottfried, he noted that the piece is “rather difficult” and therefore instructed Franziska to “tackle it at once”.It was published at the turn of the year 1787/1788 by music publisher Franz Anton Hoffmeister . Instead of Mozart’s original intention to dedicate it to Franziska von Jacquin, one of his most talented pupils, it was dedicated to Nanette and Barbette Natrop, daughters of Viennese businessman Franz Wilhelm Natorp, also in the Jacquin circle.

Four-hand piano music—two players at one keyboard—first surfaced in England in the early seventeenth century and became immensely popular in the mid-eighteenth century. As children/teenagers in the 1760s, Mozart and his gifted older sister Maria Anna (Nannerl) greatly popularized four-hand playing all over Europe through the tours they were taken on by their father Leopold. A famous painting of the Mozart family from about 1780 depicts the two showing crosse-hand technique at the keyboard, their father standing by with violin, and a portrait of their recently deceased mother on the wall.

Wolfgang apparently wrote his first four-hand sonata, K. 19d, in London in 1765 when he was nine years old. Nannerl also mentioned in a letter of 1800 that she had other similar four-hand works in her possession, some of which may have been even earlier works, but all of which regrettably are lost. Wolfgang returned to the genre in 1772 with the D major Sonata, K. 123a (K. 381), probably influenced by seeing circulating manuscripts of Charles Burney’s four-hand sonatas even before they were printed in 1777 as the first published set of piano duets. Mozart went on to complete three more, of which the present C major Sonata of 1787 was the last.

In Mozart’s day it was customary for the woman to play primo (the higher part, often with the melody) and the man secondo (the lower part, often with the bass support)—Wolfgang and his sister always played thus and perhaps instigated the custom. (From 1769 onward, having reached marriageable age, Nannerl was no longer permitted to perform in public.) Charles Burney, famous for his observations on musical life in many European countries, requested that a lady who wished to play piano duets should remove the hoops from her skirt, and not be embarrassed if her left hand occasionally grazed the gentleman’s right !

“Her musical universe is strong and colored ” Marc Vignal, musicologist and critic in Le monde de la Musique. Photo by Bernard Dauphiné

Francoise Choveaux was trained in the Lille Conservatory of Music CRD, Ecole Normale Supérieure de Musique de Paris, the Institute Peabody of Baltimore and in Juilliard School of New York. She performed in prestigious festivals in France, in Europe, in Asia, in the United States and in Brazil.

Françoise Choveaux takes up with a musical tradition anchored in the 19th Century. She is a composer but also a pianist. As of today, she has already written more than 280 opus for all instruments and all formations, from solos to symphony orchestras. And her works are performed in Europe (France, Italy, Germany, Russia, Belgium, Baltic States), in Asia and in America. Numerous live recordings and in studio were made of her music, among which the integral works of her quartets recorded by the famous Vilnius Strings Quartet. As pianist, she stood out as an privileged interpreter of French music: the international and specialized press approved by a large majority her recordings (10 Repertoire, 5 Diapasons) of the complete works for Darius Milhaud’s piano in world premiere.

Françoise Choveaux has written over 280 opus : orchestral works, solo pieces, music chamber… She likes to write for all instruments. Each of her works is inspired, either by journeys, emotions, or connected directly with a literary or pictorial work.She likes to work directly with orchestras and musicians. For her, music is sharing.In 2002, she began an important orchestra cycle. First of all, by pursuing my series of three symphonies for strings today known and interpreted by several orchestras (Saint-Petersburg, Marseille Symphonic Orchestra…). Then, by writing a series of concerti. Her concerto n°2 for violin have been played during a series of concerts in the main cities of Lithuania (September 2002) by the Lithuanian National Philharmonic Orchestra. Her chamber music has always played an important role with works written for soloists and also established formations: her strings quartets were created and interpreted by the quartet of Vilnius, the Russian quartet Rimsky-Korsakov, the quartet Debussy, the quartet Ravel, the quartet Danel and the Quartet Stanislas

The Fantasia in F minor by Franz Schubert , D.940 (op. posth. 103), for piano four hands , is one of Schubert’s most important works for more than one pianist and one of his most important piano works altogether. He composed it in 1828, the last year of his life. A Dedicated to his former pupil Caroline Esterházy It has been described as “among not only his greatest but his most original” compositions for piano duet. Schubert began writing the Fantasia in January 1828 in Vienna and was completed in March of that year, and first performed in May. Schubert’s friend Eduard von Bauernfeld recorded in his diary on May 9 that a memorable duet was played, by Schubert and Franz Lachner  The work was dedicated to Caroline Esterházy, with whom Schubert was in (unrequited) love.

Schubert died in November 1828 and after his death, his friends and family undertook to have a number of his works published. This work is one of those pieces; it was published by Anton Diabelli in March 1829. The original manuscript resides at the Austrian National Library 

The Fantasia is divided into four movements, which are interconnected and played without pause. A typical performance lasts about 20 minutes.

1. Allegro molto moderato
2. Largo
3. Scherzo. Allegro vivace
4. Finale. Allegro molto moderato

The basic idea of a fantasia with four connected movements also appears in Schubert’s Wanderer Fantasy, and represents a stylistic bridge between the traditional sonata form  and the essentially free-form tone poem. It was the forerunner of the leit motif where themes become characters in a developing drama creating a new less formal art form that was to open the way for Liszt’s father in law Richard Wagner with his ‘Ring’ cycle of operas. The basic structure of the two fantasies is essentially the same: allegro, slow movement, scherzo, allegro with fugue. The form of this work, with its relatively tight structure (more so than the fantasias of Beethoven or Mozart ), was influential on the work of Franz Liszt , who arranged the Wanderer Fantasy as a piano concerto, among other transcriptions he made of Schubert’s music.

Peer Gynt, op 23, is the incidental music  to Henrik Ibsen’s 1867 play Peer Gynt, written by Grieg in 1875. It premiered along with the play on 24 February 1876 in  Christiania (now Oslo).Over a decade after composing the full incidental music for Peer Gynt, Grieg extracted eight movements to make two four-movement suites. The Peer Gynt suites are among his best-known works, although they began as incidental compositions. Suite No. 1, Op. 46 was published in 1888, and Suite No. 2, Op. 55 was published in 1893.

Edvard Grieg was one of the definitive leaders of Scandinavian music. Although he composed many short piano pieces and chamber works, the work Grieg did for this play by Ibsen stood out. Originally composing 90 minutes of orchestral music for the play, he later went back and extracted certain sections for the suites. Peer Gynt’s travels around the world and distant lands are represented by the instruments Grieg chooses to use.

When Ibsen asked Grieg to write music for the play in 1874, he reluctantly agreed. However, it was much more difficult for Grieg than he imagined, as he wrote to a friend: 

“Peer Gynt” progresses slowly, and there is no possibility of having it finished by autumn. It is a terribly unmanageable subject ” Edvard Grieg (August 1874)

Even though the premiere was a “triumphant success”, it prompted Grieg to complain bitterly that the Swedish management of the theatre had given him specifications as to the duration of each number and its order: 

I was thus compelled to do patchwork… In no case had I opportunity to write as I wanted… Hence the brevity of the pieces.

For many years, the suites were the only parts of the music that were available, as the original score was not published until 1908, one year after Grieg’s death, by Jonab Halvorsen 

Grieg was simultaneously nationalistic and cosmopolitan in his approach to composition and that was due to his extensive travelling around Europe throughout his lifetime (1843-1907). Grieg believed that his music represented the beauty and rural truths of the Norwegian landscape, but at the same time still represented Europe as an incredibly inclusive, cultural hub for the arts. Grieg was a true musical painter and his roots were so firmly tied within Norwegian folk music that the evocations of nature that can be heard in certain compositions is overwhelming. The first suite from Henrik Ibsen’s drama Peer Gynt, was first and foremost written as incidental music, and the order that they movements appear within the suite differ from that as they appear within the drama.

Grieg and Ibsen first met in Italy in 1866 and after Grieg was commissioned to do Peer Gynt, it premiered in Oslo in February 1876, with the orchestra being conducted by Grieg. Therefore, Ibsen asked Grieg to write the incidental music for his drama, Grieg was very keen, but soon the doubt as to whether he could actually complete this tricky task set in. The show is packed full of intense drama, comedy and tragedy, and with all of these themes buzzing around, Grieg found it notoriously difficult to compose on the short time scale that Ibsen had set and because of this Grieg lost some enthusiasm due to the high level of complexity.

Grieg commented in a letter to a friend in 1874 that, “Peer Gynt progresses slowly and there is no possibility of having it finished by autumn. It is a terribly unmanageable subject.” Within the whole play, Grieg wrote 33 separate pieces of incidental music, however the two famous suites were hand-picked by Grieg himself, and show off the highlights of the show. The outline of the story is fairly simple – Peer Gynt is the protagonist of the story and the drama is set around his travels, dreams and crimes. Thus, each act is accompanied but incidental music which compliments the theme.

At first, all of the incidental music was published as a piano duet, and after Grieg’s death in 1907, the suites were orchestrated for a full orchestra, and subsequently published. The suite n. 1 op 46 is the one played today to end the concert 

Movement I: Morning Mood 

The first movement within the suite is entitled Morning Mood, and it is one of Grieg’s most well-known compositions.Even without its title, this piece paints a strong sound of nature and the natural landscape, and you can really hear Grieg’s roots within the rural land. This piece captures the beginning of the day in the mountains and forests of Norway and everything is peaceful and positive within the drama and Peer Gynt’s dreams.

Movement II: Aase’s Death

The second movement within this suite is entitled Aaes’s Death and it is a very big shift in tone from the previous movement. As shown in the title, this movement is about the death of Aase, who is Peer Gynt’s mother. The scene behind this piece is awfully tragic – Aase is dying alone on one of the mountains in the Norwegian wilderness and nobody is there to help her. This movement is haunting and dark, which emphasises Grieg’s more emotional hand and masterful grip on powerful music.

Movement III: Anitra’s Dance 

The third movement is depicting a seductive dance which emphasises the grace and beauty of Anitra, who is a daughter of a chieftain, and Peer Gynt is infatuated with her. This movement acts as the fun and playful scherzo of the suite. Its in 3/4 time and has a waltz feel to it.

Movement IV: In the Hall of the Mountain King

The final movement of the suite is the ever-loved In the Hall of the Mountain King, which is another of Grieg’s instantly recognisable works. This movement depicts an unusual dance of gnomes, that in the story are actually chasing Peer Gynt, which is why when the recognisable melody is played repeatedly, it gets more and more aggressive. The melody is passed around the whole orchestra and there is barely a moment where not one instrument is playing this theme. Each time it comes back it gets more savage, which is representing the gnomes chasing Peer Gynt around the mountains.

Zala Kravos at St Marys A born musician of great artistry and intelligence

Fun and games but what music !

At Leighton House when the KCMS join forces with the Keyboard Trust even the Peacocks have a smile on their face as Zala and Val Kravos led us up the ‘garden path’ with music making of masterly Hausmusik that Frederic Leighton’s music room has not seen for many moons .

Brother and sister in their early twenties, both master musicians perfecting their skills as a duo in Paris at the École Normale, having gained their Bachelors with honours as soloists from the RCM in London and LUCA in Brussels.

Filling this warmly rich salon with music making of rare beauty and mastery. From the last work for piano duet by Mozart played with impish intent by a duo who have the music in the hearts and soul and have no need of a printed aide memoire to invade their intimate musings.

Beethoven’s penultimate sonata played with intelligence and aristocratic poise before letting rip with the atomic explosions of Prokofiev’s third Sonata.

The second half with everyone in much better spirits having been summons from the bar by the KCMS’s delightful cryer, we were ready to be seduced by Debussy’s Petite Suite. With Val seated in the front seat but with the sumptuous back seat driving of Zala, the piano radiated sounds of whispered secrets and scintillating charm. This was surely the highlight of an extraordinarily enjoyable evening where knowing glances between brother and sister created a voyage of discovery that we were all enticed to follow.

Of course the Fantasy in F minor had Zala in the front seat and she even took control of the pedals as this wondrous work unfolded with masterly musicianship and playing of four hands but united as two.

Griegs op 46 suite was a kaleidoscope of emotions from the atmospheric Morning and serious intent of the Death of Ase, to the impish caprice of Anitra’s Dance and the wild tarantula like abandonment ‘In the Hall of the Mountain King’.

One of Brahms most loved Hungarian dances was the Kravos family way of thanking us for offering such a sumptuous occasion for them to share their music with.

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2025/11/11/zala-and-val-kravos-take-st-marys-perivale-by-storm-with-mastery-and-inspiration/

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2025/11/03/nicolo-giuliano-tuccia-at-st-jamess-playing-of-style-with-a-refined-palette-of-sumptuous-sounds/

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2023/03/24/simone-tavoni-at-livorno-classica-flying-high-with-dinosaurs-with-poetic-reasoning/

Originally from Slovenia but raised and educated in Luxembourg, Zala and her younger brother Val have performed since early childhood across Europe, as well as in China and the United States. They have excelled as soloists, including in performances with orchestras, as chamber musicians, and in piano four-hands and two-piano configurations. Their musical journey began at the Conservatory of the City of Luxembourg, where they earned multiple diplomas in piano performance, music theory, and piano four hands. They have won several national and international competitions for young musicians, but for several years, they have preferred focusing on public performances and recordings. As outstanding talents, they attracted the attention of distinguished mentors early in their careers. Zala studied under Maria João Pires and Louis Lortie at the Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel in Belgium, while Val trained with Jacques Rouvier at the Musica Mundi School in Belgium and Sylvia Thereza, former assistant to Pires. From 2019 to July 2025, Zala pursued her studies at the Royal College of Music in London, graduating in 2023 with a First-Class Bachelor’s degree and completing a two-year Master of Music in Performance (Keyboard) with Distinction under Norma Fisher . Val earned a Bachelor’s degree in piano performance from the LUCA School of Arts in Belgium. Both are currently in their first year of a Master’s programme at the École Normale de Musique de Paris ‘Alfred Cortot’, specialising in piano four-hands and two-piano repertoire. In 2021, they recorded an album of piano four-hands music in Germany, following Zala’s debut solo album in 2017 at age fourteen. Both recordings feature iconic repertoire from various periods alongside original compositions written for them by contemporary Luxembourgish and French composers. These albums have garnered critical acclaim and media attention across multiple countries.

The Sonata in C major for piano four-hands, K.521 was composed by Mozart  in 1787 and was his last complete piano duet sonata It is in three movements:

Allegro, Andante and Allegretto.The autograph manuscript of the sonata is preserved in the Fitzwilliam Museum,Cambridge. 

In Mozart’s thematic catalog, (Köchel) the piece was dated May 29, 1787. On that same day, he also received word of his father’s death. Mozart then shared the sad news with his close friend Gottfried von Jacquin, a Viennese court official and amateur musician, and subsequently dedicated the piece to Gottfried’s sister, Franziska von Jacquin. In Mozart’s letter to Gottfried, he noted that the piece is “rather difficult” and therefore instructed Franziska to “tackle it at once”.It was published at the turn of the year 1787/1788 by music publisher Franz Anton Hoffmeister . Instead of Mozart’s original intention to dedicate it to Franziska von Jacquin, one of his most talented pupils, it was dedicated to Nanette and Barbette Natrop, daughters of Viennese businessman Franz Wilhelm Natorp, also in the Jacquin circle.

Four-hand piano music—two players at one keyboard—first surfaced in England in the early seventeenth century and became immensely popular in the mid-eighteenth century. As children/teenagers in the 1760s, Mozart and his gifted older sister Maria Anna (Nannerl) greatly popularized four-hand playing all over Europe through the tours they were taken on by their father Leopold. A famous painting of the Mozart family from about 1780 depicts the two showing crosse-hand technique at the keyboard, their father standing by with violin, and a portrait of their recently deceased mother on the wall.

Wolfgang apparently wrote his first four-hand sonata, K. 19d, in London in 1765 when he was nine years old. Nannerl also mentioned in a letter of 1800 that she had other similar four-hand works in her possession, some of which may have been even earlier works, but all of which regrettably are lost. Wolfgang returned to the genre in 1772 with the D major Sonata, K. 123a (K. 381), probably influenced by seeing circulating manuscripts of Charles Burney’s four-hand sonatas even before they were printed in 1777 as the first published set of piano duets. Mozart went on to complete three more, of which the present C major Sonata of 1787 was the last.

In Mozart’s day it was customary for the woman to play primo (the higher part, often with the melody) and the man secondo (the lower part, often with the bass support)—Wolfgang and his sister always played thus and perhaps instigated the custom. (From 1769 onward, having reached marriageable age, Nannerl was no longer permitted to perform in public.) Charles Burney, famous for his observations on musical life in many European countries, requested that a lady who wished to play piano duets should remove the hoops from her skirt, and not be embarrassed if her left hand occasionally grazed the gentleman’s right !

The Piano Sonata No. 31 in A♭ major, op 110, by Beethoven  was composed in 1821 and published in 1822 and is the middle sonata  in the trilogy ( op.109, 110, and 111) that he wrote between 1820 and 1822, and is the penultimate of his thirty two Sonatas for piano . Though the sonata was commissioned in 1820, Beethoven did not begin work on Op. 110 until the latter half of 1821, and final revisions were completed in early 1822. The delay was due to factors such as Beethoven’s work on the Missa solemnis and his deteriorating health. The original edition was published by Schlesinger  in Paris and Berlin in 1822 without dedication, and an English edition was published by Muzio Clementi  in 1823.

The work is in three movements ( above are some pages from the original manuscript housed in Bonn ) : The Moderato first movement follows a typical sonata form  with an expressive and cantabile  opening theme. The Allegro second movement begins with a terse but humorous scherzo, which is probably based on two folk songs, and is followed by a rather technically treacherous Trio . The last movement comprises multiple contrasting sections: a slow introductory recitativo , an arisoso dolente, a fugue , a return of the arioso, and a second fugue in inversion that builds to a passionate and heroic conclusion.Critics have noted :”Not a single note is superfluous” Hermann Wetzel; “In none of the other 31 piano sonatas does Beethoven cover as much emotional territory: it goes from the absolute depths of despair to utter euphoria … it is unbelievably compact given its emotional richness, and its philosophical opening idea acts as the work’s thesis statement, permeating the work, and reaching its apotheosis in its final moments.Opus 110 is a journey into the infinite”Jonathan Biss The first known recording of the Op. 110 sonata was made on 14 December 1927 and 8 March 1928 by Frederic Lamond and was subsequently recorded on 21 January 1932 by Artur Schnabel in Abbey Road Studios, London, for the first complete recording of the Beethoven piano sonatas and was the first to be recorded in the set. Myra Hess’ recording of the work in 1953 was described  as among her “greatest successes in the recording studio” “In a last euphoric effort, its conclusion reaches out beyond homophonic emancipation, throwing off the chains of music itself.” – Alfred Brendel

 Piano Sonata No. 3 in A minor, Op. 28 (1917) by Sergei Prokofiev was composed using sketches dating from 1907. Prokofiev gave the première of this in Saint Petersburg on 15 April 1918, during a week-long festival of his music sponsored by the Conservatory. Early in his creative life, Prokofiev developed a highly individual way of writing for the piano. Though the differences between the piano textures of his early and late works are palpable, the main qualities of his piano writing are recognizable throughout.Prokofiev composed this piece in 1917, the same year as his fourth sonata . Both of these sonatas bear the subtitle “From the Old Notebooks”. This sonata derives from works that he composed as a teenager. In a letter to Miaskovsky on 26 June 1907, Prokofiev wrote about Piano Sonata no. 3: “It will remain…in one movement: pretty, interesting, and practical”. This sonata reveals most of the traditional sections in a sonata-form, within which Prokofiev employs his own blend of nineteenth- century Russian and twentieth-century characteristics.

This third sonata of his nine sonatas was a clear departure from his previous humorous style with his second sonata  from 1912. After the energetic and virtuoso third sonata, his fourth sonata and pieces that followed it were a clear departure from the style of his third sonata. He would compose extremely lyrical and introverted pieces after this.

Allegro tempestoso – Moderato – Allegro tempestoso – Moderato – Più lento – Più animato – Allegro I – Poco più mosso

The sonata is the shortest of his piano sonatas, being in a single movement in sonata form  and lasting approximately 7–8 minutes, but it is one of the most technically demanding pieces Prokofiev ever wrote for the piano.

The Petite Suite, L.( Lesure)  65, is a suite for piano four hands  by Claude Debussy . It has been transcribed many times, most notably in an orchestral version by Debussy’s colleague Henri Büsser.

The suite, which was composed from 1886 to 1889, was first performed on 2 February 1889 by Debussy and pianist-publisher Jacques Durand  at a salon  in Paris. It may have been written due to a request (possibly from Durand) for a piece that would be accessible to skilled amateurs, as its simplicity is in stark contrast with the  modernist works that Debussy was writing at the time.

The work, which lasts about 13 minutes ,has four movements :

1. En bateau (Sailing): Andantino
2. Cortège (Retinue): Moderato
3. Menuet: Moderato
4. Ballet: Allegro giusto

The first two movements are inspired by poems from the volume ‘Fêtes galantes’ by Paul Verlaine(1844–1896).

Schubert died in November 1828 and after his death, his friends and family undertook to have a number of his works published. This work is one of those pieces; it was published by Anton Diabelli in March 1829. The original manuscript resides at the Austrian National Library

The Fantasia is divided into four movements, which are interconnected and played without pause. A typical performance lasts about 20 minutes.

1. Allegro molto moderato
2. Largo
3. Scherzo. Allegro vivace
4. Finale. Allegro molto moderato

The basic idea of a fantasia with four connected movements also appears in Schubert’s Wanderer Fantasy, and represents a stylistic bridge between the traditional sonata form  and the essentially free-form tone poem. It was the forerunner of the leit motif where themes become characters in a developing drama creating a new less formal art form that was to open the way for Liszt’s father in law Richard Wagner with his ‘Ring’ cycle of operas. The basic structure of the two fantasies is essentially the same: allegro, slow movement, scherzo, allegro with fugue. The form of this work, with its relatively tight structure (more so than the fantasias of Beethoven or Mozart ), was influential on the work of Franz Liszt , who arranged the Wanderer Fantasy as a piano concerto, among other transcriptions he made of Schubert’s music.

Peer Gynt, op 23, is the incidental music  to Henrik Ibsen’s 1867 play Peer Gynt, written by Grieg in 1875. It premiered along with the play on 24 February 1876 in  Christiania (now Oslo).Over a decade after composing the full incidental music for Peer Gynt, Grieg extracted eight movements to make two four-movement suites. The Peer Gynt suites are among his best-known works, although they began as incidental compositions. Suite No. 1, Op. 46 was published in 1888, and Suite No. 2, Op. 55 was published in 1893.

Edvard Grieg was one of the definitive leaders of Scandinavian music. Although he composed many short piano pieces and chamber works, the work Grieg did for this play by Ibsen stood out. Originally composing 90 minutes of orchestral music for the play, he later went back and extracted certain sections for the suites. Peer Gynt’s travels around the world and distant lands are represented by the instruments Grieg chooses to use.

When Ibsen asked Grieg to write music for the play in 1874, he reluctantly agreed. However, it was much more difficult for Grieg than he imagined, as he wrote to a friend: 

“Peer Gynt” progresses slowly, and there is no possibility of having it finished by autumn. It is a terribly unmanageable subject ” Edvard Grieg (August 1874)

Even though the premiere was a “triumphant success”, it prompted Grieg to complain bitterly that the Swedish management of the theatre had given him specifications as to the duration of each number and its order: 

I was thus compelled to do patchwork… In no case had I opportunity to write as I wanted… Hence the brevity of the pieces.

For many years, the suites were the only parts of the music that were available, as the original score was not published until 1908, one year after Grieg’s death, by Jonab Halvorsen

Grieg was simultaneously nationalistic and cosmopolitan in his approach to composition and that was due to his extensive travelling around Europe throughout his lifetime (1843-1907). Grieg believed that his music represented the beauty and rural truths of the Norwegian landscape, but at the same time still represented Europe as an incredibly inclusive, cultural hub for the arts. Grieg was a true musical painter and his roots were so firmly tied within Norwegian folk music that the evocations of nature that can be heard in certain compositions is overwhelming. The first suite from Henrik Ibsen’s drama Peer Gynt, was first and foremost written as incidental music, and the order that they movements appear within the suite differ from that as they appear within the drama.

Grieg and Ibsen first met in Italy in 1866 and after Grieg was commissioned to do Peer Gynt, it premiered in Oslo in February 1876, with the orchestra being conducted by Grieg. Therefore, Ibsen asked Grieg to write the incidental music for his drama, Grieg was very keen, but soon the doubt as to whether he could actually complete this tricky task set in. The show is packed full of intense drama, comedy and tragedy, and with all of these themes buzzing around, Grieg found it notoriously difficult to compose on the short time scale that Ibsen had set and because of this Grieg lost some enthusiasm due to the high level of complexity.

Grieg commented in a letter to a friend in 1874 that, “Peer Gynt progresses slowly and there is no possibility of having it finished by autumn. It is a terribly unmanageable subject.” Within the whole play, Grieg wrote 33 separate pieces of incidental music, however the two famous suites were hand-picked by Grieg himself, and show off the highlights of the show. The outline of the story is fairly simple – Peer Gynt is the protagonist of the story and the drama is set around his travels, dreams and crimes. Thus, each act is accompanied but incidental music which compliments the theme.

At first, all of the incidental music was published as a piano duet, and after Grieg’s death in 1907, the suites were orchestrated for a full orchestra, and subsequently published. The suite n. 1 op 46 is the one played today to end the concert

Movement I: Morning Mood 

The first movement within the suite is entitled Morning Mood, and it is one of Grieg’s most well-known compositions.Even without its title, this piece paints a strong sound of nature and the natural landscape, and you can really hear Grieg’s roots within the rural land. This piece captures the beginning of the day in the mountains and forests of Norway and everything is peaceful and positive within the drama and Peer Gynt’s dreams.

Movement II: Aase’s Death

The second movement within this suite is entitled Aaes’s Death and it is a very big shift in tone from the previous movement. As shown in the title, this movement is about the death of Aase, who is Peer Gynt’s mother. The scene behind this piece is awfully tragic – Aase is dying alone on one of the mountains in the Norwegian wilderness and nobody is there to help her. This movement is haunting and dark, which emphasises Grieg’s more emotional hand and masterful grip on powerful music.

Movement III: Anitra’s Dance 

The third movement is depicting a seductive dance which emphasises the grace and beauty of Anitra, who is a daughter of a chieftain, and Peer Gynt is infatuated with her. This movement acts as the fun and playful scherzo of the suite. Its in 3/4 time and has a waltz feel to it.

Movement IV: In the Hall of the Mountain King

The final movement of the suite is the ever-loved In the Hall of the Mountain King, which is another of Grieg’s instantly recognisable works. This movement depicts an unusual dance of gnomes, that in the story are actually chasing Peer Gynt, which is why when the recognisable melody is played repeatedly, it gets more and more aggressive. The melody is passed around the whole orchestra and there is barely a moment where not one instrument is playing this theme. Each time it comes back it gets more savage, which is representing the gnomes chasing Peer Gynt around the mountains.

Programme notes compiled by Christopher Axworthy co artistic director and trustee of the Keyboard Trust

Zala Kravos at St Marys A born musician of great artistry and intelligence

This month ,by coincidence,Alexander Ullman,emeritus KT artist has just recorded the works of Grieg for piano https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2021/10/11/alexander-ullman-the-supreme-stylist-at-the-wigmore-hall/

I have heard this piano duo now over the past five years and from their first streamed performance during the pandemic in 2020 they have grown in stature and experience and play truly as one. Two players that listen to each other and above all find the musical line and the architectural shape of what they are creating together. I have heard them play Stravinsky on many occasions and their dynamic drive and characterisation of The Rite of Spring and Petrushka is remarkable not only for their logistical mastery together but above all because these works were conceived not as virtuoso show pieces but as dance. Petrushka we are used to hearing the solo piano suite played with transcendental virtuosity ( the piano transcription was written for Artur Rubinstein with that very idea in mind!). Menahem Pressler on hearing a top prize winning pianist play it at his London debut, astonishing as his octaves were , exclaimed ‘ But I could never dance to that !’

Bravi and Scapicchi made everything they played speak as the extraordinarily complex score was transformed into a tone poem with a kaleidoscope of colour and chameleonic character.

The encore I had not heard them play before, written by Fazil Say for another piano duo The Jussen brothers. Similar to his piano work ‘Black Earth’, that is quite often played these days, it relies on atmospheric effects with strange etherial sounds created by dampening the strings with the hand inside the piano.They are works that are usually played without the score simply because logistics cannot cope with so much movement on and around the keys and turning pages as well might be too much to ask. Such was the mastery of our duo today that even the page turn was incorporated into a performance that took the audience by surprise! Demanding another encore our formidable duo offered ‘La Canzonetta’,a simple one page jewel to commemorate the 100 anniversary of Luciano Berio

Respighi too is a new work to their repertoire and each of the four episodes of the Fountains of Rome were played with an outpouring of radiance and languid flowing beauty. Streams of notes were played with a dynamic drive and kaleidoscope of colour and no matter how many notes the sense of line and architectural shape was always beautifully outlined with clarity and sumptuous beauty. What a beautifully suggestive ending they brought to Villa Medici at sunset with its whispered vibrancy that I know so well.

Roma 3 Orchestra -Young Artists Series streamed live from Teatro Palladium Rome

Bravi- Scapicchi Duo at St Mary’s seminating the infernal heat of the Eternal City

Bravi- Scapicchi – Some Enchanted Evening- A duo playing as one with artistry and mastery.

Bravi – Scapicchi at St Mary’s A Piano Duo playing with one mind and one heart with ravishing colour,refined brilliance and savagery.

The symphonic poems ‘Fountains of Rome’ (performed for the first time 100 years ago) by the Italian composer Ottorino Respighi, whisk us to the Eternal City for a unique journey between the flowing water of its famous fountains and some of its most legendary sites. Thanks to the Suites n°1 and n°2 of’ Ancient Airs and Dances for Lute’ we can travel back in time to discover once again Italian and French music of the 16th and 17th centuries reinterpreted by Respighi. 

Fountains of Rome  is a tone poem  in four movements completed in 1916 by the Italian composer Ottorino Respighi . It is the first of his three tone poems about Rome, preceding Pines of Rome (1924) and Roman Festivals  (1928). Each movement depicts a setting at one of Rome’s fountains at a different time of the day, specifically the Valle Giulia, Triton, Trevi, and Villa Medici. The premiere was held at the Teatro Augusteo on 11 March 1917, with Antonio Guarnierii conducting the Augusteo Orchestra. Respighi was disheartened at its initial mild reception and put away the score, until the piece was re-evaluated by the public following a February 1918 performance by conductor Arturo Toscanini which brought the composer international fame^] The piece was published by Casa Ricordi in 1918.Fountains of Rome calls for the following large orchestra, including piano, celesta , harps, chimes, and organ ad lib.It was also transcribed for piano four hands by the composer.

John Wilson, Henry Wood Chair of Conducting, leads the Academy Symphony Orchestra in a performance of Rachmaninov’s exuberant First Piano Concerto featuring the Academy’s first Piano Laureate, Emanuil Ivanov.

The evening concludes with Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring, which shook the musical world at its 1913 premiere, and went on to become one of the most influential works in music history.

Emanuil Ivanov with John Wilson, what a team when combined with the mastery and youthful passion of the Academy Symphony Orchestra.

Rach 1 has never sounded like this since Byron Janis became arthritic.I am of course talking of live performance because that of Rachmaninov and Richter have always been historic recordings that are cherished by all . As Emanuil rightly says this must be one of the greatest cadenzas together with Prokofiev 2 where the piano is given a chance to almost outdo the orchestra. Emanuil came close but he did not count of John Wilson with his sumptuous Stokowskian string playing of subtle phrasing and colouring or the intricate weaving of the orchestra around the piano or the piano wrapped up around the orchestra. A true chamber performance where the piano and orchestra were united in music making of refined musicianship and a style where balance not force was the name of the game. A piano that could just add gleaming comments to the ravishing string playing in a conversation of intimacy that is all too rare these days.

The Rite of Spring was a wondrous tone poem of desolation and searing intensity. To see these young players lead by Emil Hartikainen with the passionate commitment that he transmitted to his colleagues as did Daniel Schultz leading the cello’s . Guzhi Long was the remarkable timpanist who could strike fear and menace amongst his colleagues. As the barbaric fearless playing of the wind and brass blared out with youthful glee the pungent dissonant sounds that probably so upset Monteux’s audience over a century ago. John Wilson conducting with a mastery where the sense of balance and line were so clear as to make this performance almost of chamber music proportions, such was the intensity but also the generosity of the players in a give and take of searing brutality. The Dukes Hall may have seemed too small for ‘The Rite’ but that was without taking into account the musicianship and real sense of balance of the Golden Era when beauty and not brutality reigned with the wind and brass listening to their colleagues in the string section and making wondrous meaningful music together of united architectural sense.

https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1DNXGtRyFQ/?mibextid=wwXIfr

An offer of earplugs written on the ticket was certainly not needed with John Wilson who could mould all he touched with a wondrous sense of balance and style. I doubt that this Rite would ever have created the furor it did under Monteux. Richter’s preferred Rachmaninov Concerto could never have been played with more Philadelphian sumptuous sounds than these passionate young players . I hear there is a commercial RAM recording of Emanuil’s Rzewski variations described below …..no wonder he has been made the first RAM Piano Laureate.

Emanuil Ivanov sensational performance at the Wigmore Hall of Rzewski ‘ The People United will never be defeated ’ A staggering performance of total mastery and musical communication – a happening as never before!

Emanuil Ivanov at the Royal Academy of Music Astonishment and Enlightenment of a master musician

Emanuil Ivanov premio Busoni 2019 Al British in the Harold Acton Library A room with a view of ravishing beauty and seduction

Emanuil Ivanov at La Scala to the Glory of God and beyond

Emanuil Ivanov in Capua the bells of their 100 churches tolling brightly -ignited by his mastery and dedication

Emanuil Ivanov ignites Leighton House with transcendental artistry

I am very sorry to hear of the death of Maura Pausini after a long illness . The widow of the renowned pianist Franco Medori of the Neapolitan school of which Maura Pansini was a proud advocate sharing her knowledge and that of her ex husband with her many students at the S. Cecilia Conservatory .

Addio al maestro Maura Pansini, pianista e soprattutto Maestra dal cuore infinito

Maura Pansini, pianista di straordinaria sensibilità e docente amatissima del Conservatorio “Santa Cecilia” di Roma, è volata in cielo dopo una lunga malattia. La sua scomparsa lascia un vuoto profondo e difficilmente colmabile nel mondo della musica e in tutti coloro che hanno avuto la fortuna di conoscerla, di ascoltarla e soprattutto di studiare con lei. 

Diplomata in pianoforte al Conservatorio “E.R. Duni” di Matera e in Didattica della Musica al Conservatorio “Santa Cecilia” di Roma, entrambe le volte con il massimo dei voti, Maura Pansini aveva mostrato sin da giovanissima un talento limpido e disciplinato. Vincitrice di numerosi concorsi nazionali e internazionali, si era perfezionata sotto la guida del Maestro Franco Medori — suo compagno di vita e di arte — con il quale condivideva la profonda appartenenza alla grande scuola pianistica napoletana.

La sua carriera l’ha portata a esibirsi nelle più prestigiose sale italiane e internazionali — dalla Società dei Concerti di Milano all’Accademia Filarmonica di Bologna, da Firenze a Napoli, da Bruxelles a Buenos Aires, a Londra e fino agli Stati Uniti e al Libano — sempre con uno stile interpretativo elegante, rigoroso e insieme intensamente poetico.

Maura Pansini è stata una delle voci più autentiche della scuola pianistica di Vincenzo Vitale, di cui ha saputo custodire e trasmettere lo spirito: la purezza del suono, la fedeltà al testo e quella rara capacità di unire intelletto e cuore.

Ma più di ogni successo concertistico, Maura Pansini amava insegnare. Ai suoi allievi ha dedicato tutto il suo tempo, la sua energia e il suo affetto, fino agli ultimi giorni. Per lei la musica era prima di tutto un atto d’amore, e l’insegnamento un modo per trasmettere quella fiamma che ha acceso in tanti giovani pianisti oggi attivi in Italia e all’estero.
Chi l’ha conosciuta la ricorda come una Maestra attenta, generosa e severa, capace di ascoltare e di guidare, con dolcezza e fermezza, con passione e competenza. I suoi allievi erano la sua vita e a loro si è dedicata con una passione infinita.

Con la sua scomparsa se ne va una protagonista autentica della scena musicale italiana, ma resta viva la sua eredità artistica e umana, custodita nel ricordo dei suoi allievi e nel suono limpido e sincero del suo pianoforte che ora continuerà a suonare attraverso le mani dei suoi studenti.

https://youtu.be/WqCiE1J6RNU?si=kJEXcm4ncIAXdyZP

Massimo Fargnoli writes:

Un piccolo omaggio alla cara Maura, quando il 28 novembre 1997 la coinvolsi in uno spettacolare Bolero di Ravel per sei pianoforti (trascrizione di Sergio Cafaro) qui nella foto al Conservatorio di Napoli con (da sinistra) Sergio Fiorentino, Carlo Bruno, Sergio Perticaroli, Giueseppe Scotese (di spalle) e Franco Medori.

Maura Pansini – Pianista.  Si è diplomata in pianoforte presso il Conservatorio di Musica “E.R. DUNI “ di Matera e in Didattica della Musica presso il Conservatorio S. Cecilia di Roma, in entrambi conseguendo il massimo dei voti.

Durante il corso di studi è stata sempre prescelta per rappresentare il Conservatorio nelle manifestazioni artistiche più importanti (Rassegna di musica contemporanea dedicata a G.Petrassi; Rassegna nazionale sarda di Oristano, dove ha conseguito il primo premio assoluto come solista, “Tutti a S. Cecilia” presso il Parco della Musica di Roma come pianista solista).

Vincitrice di numerosi concorsi nazionali ed internazionali , ha seguito un corso triennale di perfezionamento a Roma presso la scuola Tomàs Ludovico da Victoria, sotto la guida del M° F.Medori diplomandosi con il massimo dei voti e lode. Ha inoltre seguito corsi tenuti dai maestri V.Vitale, A.Bacchelli, B.Bloch, M.Perahia.

Intensa la sua attività concertistica, spesso ospite di importanti associazioni musicali:

Società dei concerti di Milano, Accademia Filarmonica di Bologna, AGIMus di Firenze, Art’s Academy di Roma, Thalberg di Napoli, Istituzione orchestrale di Bari, Amici della Musica di Lecce, Orchestra Sinfonica della Provincia di Matera etc.

Pur svolgendo attività prevalentemente solistica, ha collaborato in esecuzioni cameristiche e con numerosi pianisti: C.Bruno, S.Fiorentino, F.Medori, S.Perticaroli, G.Scotese E. Valentini.

Ha svolto tourneé in Brasile, Argentina, Spagna, Libano, Belgio, U.s.a, Venezuela.,Danimarca.

Da alcuni anni si occupa delle nuove metodologie per l’insegnamento della musica per l’infanzia.

Su invito del M° M. Campanella, ha partecipato nel 2011 alla maratona Liszt, omaggio che l’ Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia ha promosso per celebrare il bicentenario della nascita del compositore ungherese.

È titolare della cattedra di Pianoforte presso il Conservatorio Santa Cecilia di Roma.

Some very fine musicianly playing of simplicity and intelligence which was reflected in Anastasia’s finely chosen programme that spanned the Romanticism of early Scriabin through the age of enlightenment of Mozart . The innovative pianistic world of Chopin and the baroque discipline of Bach to end with the extraordinary present day sound world of the Chaconne by Gubaidulina.

Scriabin’s early Fantasy Sonata in two movements showed off Anastasia’s refined palette of colour opening with a beautiful tempo of radiance and natural fluidity. As the rays of sunlight shone down on the piano they seemed to ignite the prism of sounds that were in Anastasia’s hands too, caressing the keys with delicacy and sensibility. There was passion and dynamic drive concealed within these sensitive hands as the cauldron reached boiling point . A beautiful sense of balance allowed the melodic line to glow so beautifully surrounded by a golden web of intricate sounds. The ‘Presto’ was played with great technical control and well oiled fingers, as the clouds passed and radiant sumptuous beauty could be heard with the passionate outpourings of the romantic exuberance of youthful Scriabin.

Mozart’s Sonata in F, the one on most piano stands in the living room of many families before the advent of television! It was played with clarity and simplicity as the operatic characters secretly hidden within the notes were revealed with subtlety and refined good taste. Schnabel is often quoted as saying that Mozart is too easy for children but too difficult for adults, because with so few notes Mozart could describe a whole world. With poignant meaning and character Anastasia gave us today a superb example of the ‘classical style’ so often overlooked by young pianists just raring to bite the bit! There was a crystalline beauty that she brought to the ‘Adagio’ where the trills and ornaments were played with a refined mastery and simplicity as she allowed the movement to speak with poignant meaning. The Assai Allegro just shot from her fingers as the movement sprang to operatic life with charm, wit and above all character.

The Chopin study op 10 n. 7, although not the so called ‘Butterfly’ study ( op 25 n. 9) is just the same a continual outpouring of repeated notes and a true feux follets. Whilst Anastasia had studied it well, I felt it was too earthbound and just needed wings to allow it to buzz around the keys with more gossamer lightness.

Her Bach Prelude and Fugue, however, was a true lesson in measure and clarity. Beautiful sounds where the voices were allowed to converse with simplicity as they were given the overall architectural shape of a true musician.

The Chaconne by Gubaidulina seems to be having something of discovery these days. In fact there were three performances last year in concerts I heard in the same week and by coincidence it was between the second and third that the sudden death of the composer was announced from Germany where she had lived in exile. It is a very complex piece full of pungent dissonances with a kaleidoscope of colours and moods . Deep bass notes out of which emerges a spiky marcato fugato before a hypnotic outpouring of repeated arpeggiandi are spread over the keyboard with ever more insistence and dissonance. This remarkable work finishes lying exhausted at the bottom of the keyboard with a whispered gasp of quite extraordinary effect. Anastasia revealed this wondrous world with masterly conviction and clarity but above all a fearless technical assurance that was breathtaking in its audacity.

Anastasia Barabanova, prize winner of numerous international competitions, made her debut as a soloist performing with an orchestra at the age of nine. Since then she has been performing internationally both solo and with various orchestras, such as Moscow State Symphony Orchestra, Lerman Chamber Orchestra, Kostroma Gubern Symphony Orchestra and others.

Her performance venues include Carnegie Hall (New York), St. George’s Church Hanover Square, St. Stephens Church, St. Mary Abbots Church (UK), Rachmaninov Hall and Small Hall of the Moscow Conservatory, Ehrbar Hall (Vienna). During season 24/25 she played recitals in such venues as Bechstein Hall, Burgh House, St Botolph without Aldgate, Holy Sepulchre (UK). Anastasia has performed actively in many festivals in Estonia, Germany, Israel, Russia, Spain and took part in master classes with Stanislav Ioudenitch, Vladimir Ovchinnikov, Oxana Yablonskaya, Leonel Morales Alonso, Dinara Klinton and others. She is a regular participant of concerts held by the Vladimir Spivakov International Charity Foundation. Anastasia was also a fellow of «New Names» Charity Foundation.

She is currently studying at the Royal College of Music, London for a Bachelor of Music degree with professor Ilya Kondratiev, where she is a Milstein Medal Award Holder, supported by the Kenneth and Violet Scott Scholarship. In 2022 Anastasia graduated with an honours diploma from Central Music School (Moscow).

She is a laureate of such competitions as Virtuoso International Music Awards Competition (UK), Gold Prize; American Protege International Concerto Competition, 1st prize; Clara Schumann International Competition, 1st prize; IV Future Stars International Piano Competition, Grand Prix and many others.

Anastasia’s repertoire ranges from Baroque era to Contemporary composers. She is also a very collaborative musician, performing a wide range of piano trios and duos, vocal repertoire with vocalists

Presented in association with Royal College of Music

Martyn Brabbins conductor
Misha Kaploukhii piano
RCM Philharmonic

Tom Bradbury Treacle (world premiere)
Brahms Piano Concerto no 2 in B flat major op 83

Visiting Professor of Conducting Martyn Brabbins returns to direct the RCM Philharmonic in a programme of Orchestral Masterworks, with RCM composer Tom Bradbury offering a sweet treat in the form of Treacle, performed publicly for the first time.

RCM Concerto Competition Winner Misha Kaploukhii takes centre stage in the stunning Second Piano Concerto by Brahms. This expansive work unfolds with a sumptuous first movement, powerful second, exquisite slow movement – including a beautiful cello solo – and richly inventive finale.

Misha Kaploukhii on his fourth outing with Brahms 2 tonight as prize winner at the Royal College of Music under the superb baton of Martyn Brabbins who also presented another prize winner Tom Bradbury with his composition ‘Treacle ‘

Misha having played the Brahms at the beginning of the year on Myra Hess’s own Steinway concert grand now housed in Bishopsgate Institute. Performances followed at St James’s Piccadilly and with the YMSO at Cadogan hall that are now crowned by a performance of aristocratic nobility and timeless beauty.

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2025/01/18/misha-kaploukhii-plays-brahms-2-with-passion-and-mastery/

Like Arrau always thinking from the bass upwards that gives such weight and architectural shape to the longest and largest of chamber music concertos with the tiniest of Scherzos added for good measure. A rhythmic precision that is rare in this concerto but did not preclude passionate sumptuous richness of aristocratic nobility. A timeless sense of control that allowed the music to unfold in all is grandeur and at times spellbinding beauty. A wonderful duet between Lisa Dolgouchine’s cello, accompanied by the delicacy and generosity of Misha’s deeply felt musicianship, inbetween dramatic outbursts of remarkable rhythmic precision. The subtle string playing of Philadelphian beauty allowed one of those ‘velvet’ moments where the piano could project on this cushion of sumptuous whispered sounds the single unembellished notes with Mozartian purity and intensity where so few notes can mean so much. The Scherzo started a bit solidly where bar lines suddenly appeared but this was soon discarded for the simple almost improvised beauty that Misha brought even to the treacherous whispered cadenza that Brahms added to this ‘wisp’ of a Scherzo . If the last movement lacked some of the grazioso at the beginning, the orchestra and piano soon found common ground with the overall grandeur and nobility that they brought together with their youthful passion and energy of overwhelming impact and exhilarating effect.

A spontaneous ovation and even flowers were truly deserved for a performance that easily stands comparison with the other great performances of this work that have resounded in the past around these august surroundings.

By God he’s got it right judging from the ovation he got from friends and foes alike in the Amaryllis Fleming Concert Hall where I remember John Lill, Dennis Lee and George Barbour performing it many moons ago under Sir Adrian Boult.

Misha Kaploukhii at St James’s ‘A star shining brightly with the poetic mastery of a great artist’

Misha Kaploukhii in Florence and Milan for the Keyboard Trust and Robert Turnbull Piano Foundation

Misha Kaploukhii mastery and clarity in Walton’s paradise where dreams become reality – updated to include the Sheepdrove Competition and graduation recital

Chopin reigns at the National Liberal Club and St Mary’s Perivale The triumph of Misha Kaploukhii and Magdalene Ho

Misha Kaploukhii plays Liszt at the RCM A Sea Symphony Concert…..Youth and music a joy to ‘behold’!

Misha Kaploukhii plays Rachmaninov Beauty and youthfulness triumph

• Béla Bartók 1881-1945
  • Three Studies Op. 18

• Nicolas Medtner 1880-1951
  • Two Elegies Op. 59

• Maurice Ravel 1875-1937
  • Gaspard de la nuit

After being dazzled by Milda Daunoraite https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2025/10/02/dazzling-milda-daunoraite-takes-the-wigmore-hall-by-storm/

we were overwhelmed by Katya Grabova today in the extraordinary line up of stars from the Royal Academy allowed to shine brightly at the Wigmore Hall. 

Two Elegie’s op 59 by Medtner immediately showed the sumptuous sounds she would produce all through the concert , and was allied to a sense of line of great clarity even if it can often seem submerged by the maze of notes that Medtner spins. She could steer herself through this maze by accompanying the melodic line with ravishing streams of notes that just illuminated the architectural shape that in lesser hands can seem an empty outpouring. The ending of this first Elegie was of featherlight brilliance with the ravishing colours of pianists of a different age . The Golden age when pianists were also magicians of wondrous sounds. The second Elegie was of refined sensibility with a palette of multi coloured sounds .A cauldron of rhapsodic beauty and a lesson of exquisite style.

Three Studies op 18 by Bartók, where the first was a ‘tour de force’ of broken octaves of turbulence and breathtaking drive. Vibrating sounds of scintillating technical brilliance but always allied to a poetic sensibility of extraordinary mastery. The second was with glistening wafts of liquid sounds played with remarkable fluidity and masterly ease just disappearing into a whispered ending out of which was heard the great opening flourish of the third study . Out of this ‘jack in the box’, compelling sounds were spread all over the keyboard with extraordinary dexterity until a beguiling tenor melody was insinuated under this busy outpouring of devilish intricacies. A ‘tour de force’ where the word study came to mean, like in Chopin, so much more than just stale technical brilliance because allied to a vision of the poetic fantasy of miniature tone poems.

This lunchtime showcase concert ended with Ravel’s Gaspard de la Nuit. Three poems by Aloysius Bertrand : Ondine- Le Gibet and Scarbo, which was Ravel’s intention to write a piece technically even more challenging than Balakirev’s ‘Islamey’ ( that has long been overtaken by Ligeti almost a century later !) .Katya brought a crystalline radiance as the water nymph wallowed in luxuriant waters. A musicianly sense of balance where the melodic line was incorporated into the very harmonic body of the structure and no matter how intricate the washes of sound Katya never lost sight of the water nymph who was allowed to glow with radiance and sumptuous beauty. Deep bass notes as ‘Ondine’ became ever more agitated gave great depth to the sound as cascades of double notes were alternated with etherial glissandi in a magic world of wondrous sounds. The final whispered uttering of ‘Ondine’ was played with remarkable control of sound with masterly pedalling that could create this mysterious last appearance before disappearing into a wash of radiant sounds ( similar to the ending wave of sounds of Chopin’s Barcarolle which Ravel greatly admired). Katya created a quite extraordinary atmosphere of desolate beauty of the Gallows hanging in the sunset in ‘Le Gibet ‘ . Played with a whispered delicacy of poignant poetic significance. I wondered why she arpeggiated the Messianic chords that add such atmosphere to this extraordinary movement. I think it must have been a poetic license , not a small hand span? ,which was compelling and of breathtaking beauty. A single strand of melody was left ( as ‘Ondine’ had been left high and dry earlier ) was of ravishing beauty like a desolate beacon gleaming in such a barren landscape. ‘Scarbo’ just unwound with its three lazy opening notes immediately overtaken by an electric shock of repeated notes that Katya played with remarkably well oiled fingers . This was just the preparation for a piece of mystery and passion ,brilliance and self identification with this devilish world of improvised hi- jinx. Katya played with a mastery that passed unnoticed such was her poetic understanding with the washes of sound of whispered menace that would become outburst of hypnotic exhilaration and searing excitement.

Katya Grabova is establishing herself as one of the most compelling young pianists of her generation.

In 2025, she won the Aspen Piano Concerto Competition, leading to a performance with the Aspen Conducting Academy Orchestra at the Aspen Music Festival. She has performed at major music festivals including  Rheingau Musik Festival and Leeds International Concert Season. Her recent appearances include performances at prestigious venues such as the Southbank Centre, Shanghai Concert Hall, the Great Hall of the Moscow Conservatory, the Tchaikovsky Concert Hall, and Lielais Dzintars Concert Hall.

A prizewinner at the Nutcracker International Contest, the Neuhaus International Music Festival, and the Mlody Virtuos Competition, Katya has performed with the Moscow Philharmonic and the Royal Academy of Music orchestras. She was also awarded the First Prize of the Mayor of Moscow Grant in piano. 

Katya has worked with a range of esteemed artists, including Dmitri Bashkirov, Michel Béroff, Robert McDonald, Andrzej Jasiński, Katarzyna Popowa-Zydroń, Christopher Elton, Vanessa Latarche, Mikhail Voskresensky, Vladimir Tropp, Vladimir Ovchinnikov, Victor Derevianko, Anton Nel, Soyeon Kate Lee and Ran Dank. 

Highlights of the upcoming season include her solo recital debut at Wigmore Hall supported by Royal Academy of Music and a performance of Rachmaninov’s Second Piano Concerto with the Kensington Philharmonic Orchestra.

Katya was born in Moscow and graduated from the Gnessin School of Music, where she studied with Tatiana Zelikman and Boris Berezovsky. She is currently pursuing her Master’s degree with Mei-Ting Sun at the Royal Academy of Music, where she was a recepient of Michael Gilsenan Named Award and holds a scholarship. She is grateful for the support of the Hill Foundation, the Robert Turnbull Piano Foundation, and the Talent Unlimited charity.

Robert Schumann (1810 – 1856):  Kreisleriana, Op.16
Ausserst bewegt
Sehr innig
Sehr aufgeregt
Sehr langsam
Sehr lebhaft
Sehr langsam
Sehr rasch
Schnell und spielend

F. Chopin: (1810-1849):

Nocturne, op.9 n 1 B-flat minor
Nocturne, op 9 n 2 E-flat major

Presented in association with Talent Unlimited

Just one major work on the programme today with two of Chopin’s earliest Nocturnes as encores. Some very expressive, stylish playing from the very first notes. A dynamic drive to the first of these eight tone poems that make up Schumann’s Kreisleriana was played with romantic ardor and subtle rubato. The central episode was a wash of delicate sounds on which the melodic line was etched with refined good taste.

The second piece was played with a beautiful legato where inner counterpoints were very subtly underlined. An improvised freedom with a melodic line of chiselled beauty on a wave of rich internal harmonies. There was a dynamic drive to the Intermezzo I : ‘Sehr Lebhaft’ of contrasting clarity as it wove its way back to the opening. The Intermezzo II: ‘Etwas bewegter’ was played with a rhapsodic freedom that seemed to loose it’s inherent drive in a rather over romanticised outpouring. The intricate counterpoints leading to the return of the opening were played with authority and a sense of line that gave great strength to a passage that can, in lesser hands, sound as though Schumann had lost his way. The whispered return of the opening was played with delicacy adding to the overall architectural shape of this second tone poem that in some hands can seem overlong.

The third piece had a rhythmic bite that contrasted so well with the central episode where voices communed with each other with yearning beauty and romantic freedom. A powerful coda was played with fearless abandon with the final chords of alternating octaves merely wafts of sumptuous sounds. The fourth ‘sehr langsam’ was played with a beautiful singing melodic line within a framework of recitativo freedom, until the clouds lifted and the wondrous beauty of the ‘Bewegter’ was allowed to glow with ravishing tenderness and beauty.

The capricious playfulness of the fifth was gradually transformed into a romantic outpouring of passionate intensity before the opening of the sixth was overheard with its tenor melody of intimate confessions. This contrasted with a strident interruption of ponderous authority played with remarkable rhythmic precision which dissolved into a wondrous rocking melody of delicate beauty.

The seventh shot from Tuccia’s agile fingers but with notes that were linked always to an anchor of harmonies with insistent forward movement. An overwhelming outpouring of dynamic drive that was suddenly curtailed with a coda of wondrous beauty. The final piece I have rarely heard played so clearly because Giuliano gave great importance to the syncopated long held bass notes allowing the limped dance of the right hand to be heard with bewitching significance. The two romantic outbursts were just momentary interruptions to this wisp of a dance that was to lead to the final whispered notes deep in the bass.

The two Chopin Nocturnes op 9 were allowed to fill this very resonant church with a Bel Canto of ravishing beauty and refined style with subtle colouring of sensitivity and whispered radiance..A palette of sounds that drew the audience in to overhear such marvels, as a barely audible trill gradually built in intensity to the sweetest of farewells of the famous Nocturne op 9 n. 2.

Nicolò Giuliano Tuccia is considered by Leslie Howard as one of the most sensitive and interesting musicians of his generation. Born in 1999, he began studying piano at a young age under the guidance of Maestro Giancarlo Peroni. He graduated with honors from the “B. Maderna” Conservatory in Cesena in 2022, winning a scholarship offered by the Rotary Club. He is currently attending the “Incontri col Maestro” Piano Academy in Imola, studying with maestros André Gallo, Alessandro Taverna, and Igor Roma, and pursuing a second-level Master’s at the “Francesco Venezze” Conservatory in Rovigo with maestros Federico Nicoletta and Roberto Prosseda.

He has also refined his studies at summer festivals, masterclasses, seminars, and conferences with internationally renowned maestros such as Edith Fischer, Avedis Kouyoumdjian, Riccardo Risaliti, and Sergio Tiempo.

Nicolò Giuliano Tuccia boasts over 50 awards in major national and international piano competitions, including the “Sergio Fiorentino International Piano Competition” (Honorable Mention), “Elevato Piano Competition” (Honorable Mention), “Vigo International Piano Competition” (Semifinalist), MAP International Music Competition in Los Angeles (First Prize), “Kings Peak International Music Competition” (Second Prize and Special Prize), London International Music Competition (Special Mention), Nota Music (Chamber Duo) finalist prize, and many others.

Nicolò Giuliano Tuccia has performed in prestigious venues across Europe and Italy, including the “Galli Theater” in Rimini, the “Alighieri Theater” in Ravenna, the “Atti Theater” in Rimini, the “Foyer Respighi” of the Municipal Theater in Bologna, the Corelli Hall of the “Alighieri Theater” in Ravenna, the “Oratorio San Rocco” in Bologna, the “Masini Theater” in Faenza, the “Prefecture Hall” in Forlì, the “Talia Theater” in Gualdo Tadino, the “Don Bosco Cinema Theater” in Perugia, the “Officers’ Club” in Bologna, the “Raffaello Palace” in Urbino, the “Villa Carcano” in Lecco, the “Vittorio Locchi Boarding School” in Rome, the Main Concert Hall of the Porto Music Conservatory, the “Martin Codax Auditorium” in Vigo, the “Salon Bank” in Vienna, the “Remonstrantse Kerk” in Alkmaar, the “St. Marie Perivale Church” in London, the Main Concert Hall of the University of Musical Semiotics in Helsinki, the Main Concert Hall of the M.K. Čiurlionis Art Gallery in Kaunas, the “Concert Hall” of the Telki Auditorium, the “Eutherpe Hall” in León, the “St. Agatha Cathedral” of the Badia in Catania, the “Villa Rina Auditorium” in Padua, the “Steinway Hall” in London, the “House of Music” in Trieste, the “Martelli House Museum” in Florence, the Candles Factory Theater in Forlì, the Menotti House in Spoleto, the “Beethoven Chamber Music Hall” in Bonn, the Grossersaal Scholss in Bergisch Gladbach, Cologne, the Gartensaal Schloss in Wolfsburg, the Concert Hall of the IIC in Berlin, the Music Room in Rome for Rai Radio 3, and the National Gallery of Palazzo Spinola in Genoa.

Nicolò has participated in numerous festivals, including the “Conoscere la Musica” Festival in Bologna, the “Misano Piano Festival” in Misano Adriatico, the “Ravenna Festival”, the ErConcerti Festival “Le Soirees Musicaux” in Emilia-Romagna, the “Le Note Tra i Calanchi” Festival in Bagnoregio, the “Clivis Umbria” Festival, the “Kaunas Piano Festival” in Lithuania, the “Altalena Music Fest” in Hungary, the “Musical Society” Festival in Helsinki, Finland, the “HIMF” Festival in the Netherlands, the “Roma Tre Orchestra” Festival, the autumn festival at the St. Perivale Church for the Keyboard Trust in London, the “Salon de la Musique” Festival, the “Bellini Festival” in Catania, the Larius International Piano Fest in Lecco, the “Elevato Piano Competition” Festival in Bonn, Vienna, and Porto, the “Amici della Musica di Casa Martelli” Festival for the Young Sound Association in Florence, the Mozart Italy Association Festival in Trieste, the Mozart Italy Association Festival in Lecce, the “Scriabin Concert Series” in Grosseto, and for the “Friends of the Carlo Felice Theater and the Niccolò Paganini Conservatory in Genoa.”

Nicolò Giuliano has performed with the Bruno Maderna Conservatory Chamber Orchestra of Cesena, the “Circle Symphony Orchestra” of Padua, the “Rimini Classica” Symphony Orchestra, the “Musici Malatestiani” Ensemble, the “Marco Allegri” Symphony Orchestra, the “Fontana Mix Ensemble” Orchestra, the “Antiqva Metropoli” Orchestra, and the Bergisch Gladbach Symphony Orchestra.

He has collaborated with conductors Jacopo Rivani, Parvi Shejazi, Antonio Raspanti, Stefano Pecci, Bernardo Lo Sterzo, and Roman Salyutov.

He has recorded for the following record labels: “Doppio Movimento”, “Movimento Classical”, IMD Music & Web, and Halidon.

In 2024, he will be on tour in Poland (Gdansk, Warsaw, and Krakow) with the “Bellini Project” in duo with Clara La Licata, and recording with the prestigious Naxos label with music by Franz Liszt and Julius Benedict. His recitals and CDs have been reviewed by the German journal Piano News, critic Christopher Axworthy, Eero Tarasti on Ampfion, Luca Ciammarughi on Amadeus Magazine, Gisela Schwarz in the “Kölner Stadtanzeiger”, and Robert Matthew Walker in “Musical Opinion.”

He is currently the president of the Forlì Cultura Association and artistic director of the Guido Agosti Festival in Forlì, where he annually invites prestigious pianists from around the world.

A second concert in London in the same month for a young musician who has had the courage to start a concert series in his home town of Forlì dedicated to one of the most important figures in music of the last century . Guido Agosti was born and is buried in Forlì , a disciple of Busoni, the world would flock to his class in Siena every summer to be inspired and reminded of the musical values of an interpreter who is but the humble servant of the composer.

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/…/homag…/

Nicolò Giuliano Tuccia in his second recital in London at St James’s Sussex Gardens began with the Sonata op 10 n 2 by Clementi . A two movement work and one of the 110 sonatas that this ‘Londoner‘ bequeathed to the world. Streams of notes of charm and beauty shaped with the ease of a master craftsman and virtuoso keyboard player. Nicolò not only played the notes with an ease and scintillating simplicity but he also imbued them with colour and beauty with above all an understanding of the overall architectural shape.

The first of Chopin’s nocturnes op 9 n.1 and 2 were played with a ravishing sense of balance where Chopin’s bel canto was shaped with poetic fantasy and beguiling freedom. In fact these five nocturnes reverberated around this noble edifice with a simple glowing beauty and subtle sense of colour . The nocturne op 37 n 1 was interrupted only by a central episode of a chorale of poignant beauty played with aristocratic poise and simplicity.The final posthumous nocturne in C minor was played with a nostalgic beauty and I was reminded that I had used it for our centennial production in Rome of Ibsen’s ‘A Dolls House’ in 1979. It has just that sense of innocent nostalgia that Nicoló captured so beautifully today.

Serenity was soon rudely interrupted by Liszt’s tragic tone poem of Hero and Leander.

The second Ballade in B minor began with the menacing waves of turbulence out of which emerges from the depths a soulful outpouring of dramatic intensity. Passionate cries were contrasted with desolate isolation as Nicoló recounted this harrowing tale with breathtaking daring as cascades of notes filled this church only to be silenced by the soulful beauty of longing and nostalgia.

A journey that Nicoló could allow to unfold with remarkable unity as breathtaking virtuosity was contrasted with decadent beauty.

Two Preludes by Debussy took us from the desolation of lonesome footsteps in the snow to the joyous Neapolitan festivities with the radiant hussle and bustle which is so much part of Capri, the jewel that shines so brilliantly in the bay of Naples .

Nicolò Giuliano Tuccia -A star in ascent in the shadow of Guido Agosti

Nicolò Giuliano Tuccia in Viterbo ‘A romantic soul laid bare with beauty and style’

Nicolò Giuliano Tuccia ‘sensibility and mastery ignite the Harold Acton Library’ including a long distance review.

Diamonds are forever at Steinways – Giuliano Tuccia for the Keyboard Trust

Nicolò Giuliano Tuccia ‘A true musician with something important to say’ from the city of the legendary Guido Agosti

Programme 

T. SVETLOVA: Humoresque on “GOD SAVE THE KING “ 

(Coronation present to HM King Charles III) 

BACH–BUSONI: Chaconne in D minor, BWV 1004 

T. SVETLOVA: Sonnets No. 1 on the theme of Bach’s Chaconne 

MOZART: Fantasy in C minor, K. 475 

E. STERN: To-nal or not to-nal, Op. 1 

Intermission 30 minutes 

CHOPIN: 24 Preludes, Op. 28 

Some very beautiful playing in which Madame Stern relied more on striving to find the soul of the music with sounds of fluidity and subtle beauty than the more usual hard hitting accuracy that we are becoming ever more accustomed to these days! It was Anton Rubinstein who declared that the pedal was the ‘soul of the piano’ and it was this which was evident from the very first notes of Tatiana Svetlova’s atmospheric homage to HM King Charles III on his Coronation. A mirage of ravishing sounds where on the horizon could be overheard “God save the King”. Tradition has it that we should stand as for the ‘Hallelujah’ Chorus from Handel’s Messiah. No one moved as they were mesmerised by the glistening beauty that flowed with such beautiful movements from Madame Stern’s hands and arms. It was very noticeable the natural use of the whole of the arm like a ballet dancer, swimming with radiant ease in a magic lake of sounds.

It was the same sounds that she brought to Busoni’s recreation of the greatest work ever written for solo violin and is by J.S. Bach. Ysaÿe had tried to match this masterpiece with six of his own solo violin sonatas but ended up by having to quote from the ‘Dies Irae’ and much else without ever coming near to Bach! Madame Stern played it with the freedom of a composer on a voyage of discovery bringing a great sense of style and individuality to the extraordinary chameleonic changes of character. It was remarkable that even with these excursions to stop and stare that she never lost sight of the architectural shape of this monumental Gothic Cathedral.

Tatiana Svetlova’s Sonnet n.1 on the Chaconne theme was another excursion into her atmospheric world of improvised beauty. Moments of sudden outbursts were played with crystalline clarity and rhythmic authority that just contrasted with this world of dreams that Madame Svetlova shares with us so serenely.

Mozart’s C minor Fantasy was played with operatic colouring and a sense of character without any hard edges but with a palette of sounds that brought this masterpiece vividly to it’s operatic life and made us sorry that it could not have been the enticing prologue to the C minor Sonata. Madame Stern’s own play on words and sounds in ‘Tonal or atonal’ she certainly nailed ,and it cleared and cleansed the air before tasting the exquisite wines that Bechstein has in its cellars downstairs.

After such Bacchian delights we were treated to Chopin’s 24 Problems op 28 . This was Fou Ts’ongs description of the Preludes which he, like Cortot , would play in concert together with the 24 Études op 10 and 25 even playing the three posthumous studies as encores. A marathon that Madame Stern had no need to match as she played the Preludes with exquisite sounds and a freedom with a play of balance that illuminated these gems as rarely can happen in larger more exposed spaces. She created in this unique space a sense of intimacy where beauty and style took the place of brutality and brilliance. The final Prelude was a case in point where her pointing of the thumb notes in the left hand with a subtle use of pedal allowed her to shape Chopin’s miraculously mellifluous outpouring with beauty and aristocratic authority rather than brutality and bruising showmanship. Two of her own pieces showed off not only her voice but more importantly her sense of improvisation in which her sudden total conviction and searing intensity ignited the comfort zone that she had enveloped us in before this unexpected outburst of dynamic drive and passionate virtuosity. Her own soothing Lullaby she sang and played and it took us back into the cocoon of beauty and elegance that she had shared with us all evening .

Edna Stern began her studies in Israel with Viktor Derevianko, a student of Heinrich Neuhaus. She continued studying with Krystian Zimerman at the Basel Hochschule and with Leon Fleisher at the Peabody Institute and at the Lake Como International Piano Foundation. Her repertoire ranges from Bach to Berio. Her recordings are highly praised by critics, receiving such awards as Diapason d’Or, Diapason Découverte, Arte Best CD, Gramophone upcoming artist, and Sélection Le Monde. Her last recording, dedicated to Hélène de Montgeroult received a Critic’s Choice of the Year 2017 of the Gramophone Magazine and Choice of France Musique, the French radio.

Edna Stern has performed at prestigious halls and festivals such as the Philharmonie of Paris, Concertgebouw of Amsterdam, Munich’s Hekulessaal, Paris’ Châtelet Theater, Moscow’s Music-House, Petronas in Kuala Lumpur and Musashino hall in Tokyo; performing in solo recitals and with orchestras, with conductors such as Claus Peter Flor and Andris Nelsons. Stern gives masterclasses all over the world, in such places as the CNSM of Paris, Rutgers University, and Tel-Aviv Zubin Mehta School of Music.

She has been a professor at the Royal College of London since 2009 and her musical activities include working with great artists in other art fields, like film director Amos Gitaï, as well as Etoile/Leading principal dancer from the Paris Opera, Agnès Letestu.

Musical Profile
 
Stern built a reputation as an interpreter who does not shrink from taking strong and unconventional stands and at the same time respectful of the historical tradition of interpretation and the heritage of her own teachers. She is especially known for her Bach interpretation which received awards and critical praise throughout Europe (Gold Diapason, Arte best cd, 10/10 ClassicToday, 4 stars Classica Magazine).

“With Edna Stern we avoid the clichés. Her playing is neither romantic nor baroque. It takes on perfectly the serious tone of the composer without falling into coldness or rigidity. It is at the same time an instrumental revelation and a clear sign that music is indeed alive.”
– Mathias Heizmann, Arte/2009

While studying with Krystian Zimerman at the Basel Hochschule in Switzerland, she also took advantage of the famous Schola Cantorum Basilensis and its collection of authentic instruments, developing thus another facet to her musical approach. For the 2010 celebration of the birth of Chopin, Paris’ museum of instruments of the Paris Philharmonie, she was chosen as the pianist to record for their series on the museum’s original instrument, a Pleyel from 1842. This recording was released with Naïve and got enthusiastic reviews:

“The subtle chemistry of a successful Chopin. This CD has eclipsed all that we’ve heard so far in the commemoration of the bicentenary of Chopin’s birth.”
– Katchi Sinna, Muzikzen 2010

Her interest in different instruments and sounds set her apart as a Mozart player and her recording of Mozart’s Concerti was chosen in France by the newspaper Le Monde as one of the 10 top CD’s of 2010, and was as well praised in the German and English critique:

“It is fascinating to hear Edna Stern’s perfect, mature and effortless technique, which she does not however use for the purpose of bragging, but puts discreetly at the service of music. She succeeds to the extent of completely disappearing behind the music… developing a whole unexpected wealth of nuances and a variety of tone colors. …a spontaneous joyful playing with beauty and respect: my Mozart- Ideal through this CD has become much closer.”
– Bayrische Rundfunk, 2010

“This is an artist with a delicate touch who likes to shape every detail of phrasing and articulation as if polishing a tiny gem.”
– Gramophone Magazine, 2011

Edna Stern has a special interest in interpreting and rediscovering forgotten composers. Her recording “Piano of Enlightenment” presented the music of nowadays under-estimated composers such as Galuppi and C.P. E. Bach alongside pieces by J.S. Bach, Haydn and Mozart. Her latest Montgeroult recording published by Orchid Classics was awarded a Critic’s Choice of the Year 2017 by Gramophone Magazine and Choice France Musique.

BBC Magazine writes:
“Stern, playing and 1860 Pleyel trumps Bruno Robillard and Nicolas Stavy’s recordings in colour, style and panache. Textures shimmer in the Etude No. 37, the melody speaks eloquently in No. 26 and in the D minor Op. 107, the shades of Chopin Revolutionary Etude are made obvious.”

And Gramophone:
“Edna Stern deserves the highest praise for resurrecting it, and has the fleet fingers and sensitive musicianship necessary to make the very best case for it.”
 
A very meaningful and important program she has been playing these last few years features Sonatas written by Jewish Composers from Theresinstadt. She has been the first to perform and record Karel Reiner’s 2nd Piano Sonata “Victory”. Her performance in New York earned her an immediate invitation to perform in Los Angeles at the Colburn School of Music as part of the “Recovered Voices” project of James Conlon.
 
Edna Stern recorded fifteen albums spanning the Baroque (3× J.S. Bach, C.P.E. Bach), Classical (Mozart Concerti, Piano of Enlightenment, 3× Beethoven Sonatas, Montgeroult, Johann Simon Mayr Concerti), Romantic (Schumann, 2× Chopin) and 20th century (Fire of Black and White album) periods.

Shunta Morimoto at the National Liberal Club ‘A musical genius comes of age’

Louis-Victor Bak at St James’s Piccadilly