ChristopherAxworthy-MusicCommentary

Axel Trolese comes to us via a glowing review from Louis Lortie. Very high praise indeed! Making his London debut in the sumptuous new Bechstein Hall.

Already well known and much admired in Italy he came to this new hall with a programme from Bach to Ravel including shorter pieces by Liszt, Rachmaninov and Albeniz .

It was enough to hear the opening of Bach’s Italian concerto to realise we were in the presence of a real musician with a technical command of the keyboard that could allow him to add ornaments that were like tightly wound springs.But these were subtle ornaments that just highlighted his architectural understanding as the opening movement was played with dynamic rhythmic energy and astonishing clarity. Contrasts of dynamics in layers that were hardly noticeable but illuminated the score with refreshing spontaneity.A slow movement seemingly without pedal as the left hand was a pulsating heartbeat over which expanded the ravishingly simple beauty of Bach’s cantilena.Playing of style and understanding that allowed him to round corners and breathe as a great bel canto singer creating a magical atmosphere of wonder and purity between the two dynamically driven outer movements.The last movement was played with an infectious ‘joie de vivre’ and rhythmic drive with colouring of orchestral proportions.

A performance of exultation and exhilaration and a wake up call after the sumptuous Sunday lunch that was part of the concert package of this beautiful new venue.

An audience caught in an electric shock of piano playing of extraordinary clarity and precision but also of passion and transcendental command as are testimony the gasps that greeted his phenomenal performance of Liszt’s transcendental study in F minor. A performance where the rests and dynamic markings were observed with mastery and the same intelligent musicianship that he had brought to all he played. A use of the pedals not to smudge or hide but to illuminate and astonish.It was the same crystalline clarity that he had brought to the cascades of water of the fountains at the Villa d’Este .Gently cascading drops of water that gradually built to a torrent of turbulance that anyone who has visited Tivoli can testify to. A whole avenue of small fountains that once used to play music as well and at the end of these vast majestic avenues suddenly an enormous fountain reaching high up into the sky. Liszt was able to portray this scene so vividly as he was too in many of the pieces that he wrote on his travels.

Axel brought his fantasy and artistry to weigh, creating a scintillating after lunch stroll in this magic garden.The Rachmaninov Étude -Tableaux op 33 n. 6 was indeed a call to arms with sumptuous full sound and driving rhythmic energy leading to the triumphant final declamations. After these pianistic pyrotechnics it was refreshing to open the window on a world of sunshine and the simple traditional dance of Spain. Axel has recently recorded Albeniz’s complete Iberia and he feels in his veins the Spanish idiom of dance,colour and animal passion.A curious paradox that the best Spanish music ever written was by French men who had never set foot in Spain! Axel played ‘El Puerto’, the second piece from book one of four.His understanding of the colours and passions was clear from the very first notes as we listened enchanted by this sudden ray of sunlight that had entered this rather darkened atmosphere.

Clicking our heels and stamping our feet we were now ready for the main work on the programme that was the suite ‘Gaspard de la Nuit’ by Ravel inspired by the poem of Aloysius Bertrand .Axel gave a spectacular performance ,one of the finest I have ever heard for it’s impeccable perfection but also poetic understanding and at times breathtaking fearless mastery. He has just recorded it and it is obviously destined to be top of the charts for long to come.

‘Ondine’ was played with a sense of line above a continuous outpouring of glistening sounds of quite extraordinary difficulty. Axel always keeping a sense of balance no matter how quietly he played. Loudly too of course as the streams of thirds and sixths were played with remarkable horizontal sounds as they built up to a tumultuous climax where both hands were required to exult the melodic line hidden within it’s midst. ‘Ondine’ exhausted was left adrift with barely enough breath to murmur goodbye and was played with miraculously whispered tones by Axel with a featherlight fluidity of quite extraordinary sensitivity.A gentle rippling wave took our water nymph from us into the distance with a knowing smile on her face which Ravel depicts with such genius.The tolling bell in ‘Le Gibet’ struck terror into our hearts for the desolate landscape that Ravel depicts and which Axel played with visionary beauty.Sumptuous rich harmonies were allowed to ring out with the tolling bell in the distance and a plaintive voice chiselled into the midst of this desolate atmosphere that seemed to have no beginning and no end.

De Falla’s Ritual Fire Dance was the final piece on the programme and was played with true orchestra sounds with blasts of pedal and sudden changes of gear as Axel arrived at the final desperate insistence of repeated chords before the nose dive into the bottom of the keyboard.

An encore from a very enthusiastic audience queuing up at the end to acquire Axel’s latest CD’s of Iberia but not before a little thank you from our guest pianist with the delicately languid song and dance n. 3 by Mompou.

Axel with the distinguished concert manager Lisa Peacock

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magnificent pianos and sumptuous hospitality are to be found in the newly opened Bechstein Hall in Wigmore Street

To all who this may concern at the Keyboard Charitable Trust:
The concert organisers at St Alkmund’s Church, Shrewsbury are delighted to be able to report that
today’s concert, sponsored by the KCT, was a success in every way. More than one hundred
people attended the event at the church to hear Axel Trolese perform an exceptional programme
of music (see below for details) and receive a standing ovation. He seemed to enjoy his visit too –
what a personable chap – sending us a prompt and fulsome thank you on his way back to London.
Dear Caroline, Jeremy and Peter,
It was a real pleasure meeting you and playing for your warm audience this afternoon.
Thank you also for a delicious lunch and, most importantly, a fantastic company and welcome in your
beautiful town.
Many thanks and have a good evening,
Axel

We were pleased to acknowledge the support of
the Keyboard Charitable Trust before and after the concert and on our website:
ST ALKMUND’S CHURCH, SHREWSBURY TUESDAY 26 TH NOVEMBER

The Italian pianist Axel Trolese visited Shrewsbury on Tuesday 26th November 2024 to perform for the first time in Shropshire, arriving hot-foot from playing his debut recital in London at the new Bechstein Hall. This recital in the Tuesday lunchtime St Alkmund series was the first recital sponsored by The Keyboard Trust and the Robert Turnbull Piano Foundation, who plan to support two Shrewsbury International Piano Recitals per year, in recognition of the welcome given to young international pianists by the town. Axel comes highly recommended from his homeland, where he is a regular recitalist and esteemed teacher. His programme was influenced by his recent achievement of reaching the second round of the Ferruccio Busoni International Piano Competition. Axel explained to the audience that his programme demonstrated how the piano has been used to illustrate different genres of music. He started with J.S. Bach’s Italian Concerto, with the piano acting in orchestral fashion. As the first movement got underway, it was obvious that we were listening to a master of his craft, with immaculate technique, light pedalling and melodies singing from both hands. Repeats were adorned with intricate and subtle ornaments and variations in dynamics that seemed effortless and added to the freshness of his interpretation. The slow movement was achingly beautiful, played in a manner faithful to the period yet full of colour and interest. No surprise, then, to learn that Axel is a keen student of period instruments such as the fortepiano and harpsicord. The final movement was played with infectious enthusiasm, full of joy. What future pleasures await us as Axel delves into the vast treasure trove of Bach’s music for keyboard!Next up, from the baroque we moved to the watery depths of romantic repertoire of Franz Lizst, exploring the beautiful fountains and gardens of the 16th Century Villa D’Este in Tivoli near Rome. There were handfuls of notes pouring out of the piano in cascades of sound, soaking the audience in torrents of notes. Those of us lucky enough to have visited the Villa were reminded of the sculptural beauty of the gardens and fountains, which Liszt visited on three occasions. Axel then switched from the heavenly to the demonic Transcendental study in F minor which he  played with seemingly effortless bravado.In my limited experience, it is rare to find a young pianist equally at home with Bach and Rachmaninov but it was the breadth and complexity of Axel’s repertoire that was so impressive in his recital. With technical challenges seemingly brushed aside, he could concentrate on the essence of the music, taking the audience with him on an exhilarating adventure. Rachmaninov Etude-Tableau? No problem.Axel has a deep love of French and Spanish music. He has recorded the complete Iberia by Albeniz and he played a composition based on the life of a busy fishing port, busy with sounds of a fish market and a young girl singing. Why an Italian feels so grounded in the dance and passion of Spanish music is a mystery, but Axel relishes their music and passion.St Alkmunds was not only full of an enthusiastic audience but characteristically bathed in winter sunshine. It was something of a jump of faith to get into the mood of the gothic world of sinking mermaids, hangmen and the night terrors of Ravel’s Gaspard de la Nuit. Ravel is Axel’s favourite composer and he relished disappearing into this spooky sound world, full of foreboding. Finally the recital ended with the flourish of De Falla’s Ritual Fire Dance, played with customary panache and passion. The Shrewsbury audience was on its feet, having enjoyed a world-class performer at the top of his game. The audience has no intention of letting Axel go without an encore and we heard the hauntingly beautifulCanción y danza no 6 by Federico Mompou. The simple beauty of the piece was a perfect end to an outstanding performance from a musician bound for greatness. Thank you Keyboard Trust and Robert Turnbull Piano Foundation for sending such a treasure for Shrewsbury to enjoy. 

The Gift of Music – The Keyboard Trust at 30

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Filippo Tenisci exults the genius of Wagner and Liszt in Velletri

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2023/10/16/filippo-tenisci-opening-concert-at-roma-3-a-musician-of-refined-intelligence-and-mastery/
A recital by Filippo Tenisci for Prof Ricci’s twentieth anniversary season of concerts at the Tuscia University. Not only for the public present in their beautiful auditorium but also streamed live to an audience worldwide.
A collaboration with the Keyboard Trust based in London that aims to help exceptionally talented graduate pianists find a public at the start of their professional career. At a certain stage in a musician’s early career it is only through playing in public that one learns from listening critically to oneself .
Filippo is fast making a name for himself with his dedication to Wagner and Liszt’s transcriptions or paraphrases. Wagner was married to Liszt’s daughter ,Cosima ,and Liszt spent a good part of his life in Weimar conducting the works of his son in law and composing music that looked to the future.

It is exactly this aspect that Filippo wanted to explain to the public today opening with a work especially written for him by Paolo Catenaccio. ‘Crepuscolo’ is the very Wagnerian title of the 10 Miniature Nocturnes written in 2023. Ten ‘bagatelles’ of luminosity,dissonance and resolution that created an atmosphere for the opening of the concert that also included a rarely played Haydn Sonata in two movements.

A sonata that Filippo played with a classical simplicity and clarity where his crystalline fingers could bring vividly to life the ‘joie de vivre’ and genial invention of the father of the Sonata.
Haydn was also Beethoven’s teacher and it was the last work that Beethoven wrote for the piano that closed the first half of Filippo’s recital.These too were bagatelles – six miniature tone poems that like Chopin and the Mazurka contain the very essence of the composers soul.
Filippo played them with sterling musicianship and respect but his fantasy and passionate abandon he kept for after the interval with Wagner/ Liszt that ignited the concert with an electric shock of energy and passion.

Beethoven’s ‘cantabile e compiacevole’ indication in the first Bagatelle give a clue to the peace and serenity that the composer at last could experience after the tormented life of an artist. It is in the six miniatures as in the variations of the last two sonatas op 109 and 111 that Beethoven could perceive in his private world of silence with a composer completely deaf to the external sounds that had bewitched him for a good part of his life.
The ravishing beauty and simplicity of the first Bagatelle was mirrored in the third still with particular indications of calm and peace – ‘cantabile e grazioso’. The ‘quasi allegretto’ of pastoral calm of the fifth and finally a visionary ‘Andante amable e con moto’ of the sixth .A peace and calm that was only disturbed by the rumbustious outcry of the second,”Allegro’ and the fourth ,’Presto’ but always resolved with gentle peaceful endings.
It is only the opening and ending frame of the sixth that Beethoven allows his irascible impatience to come to the fore for the last time.
Filippo played this great final monument with classical respect and impeccable musicianship but just missed the visionary sounds of the genius of Bonn who by some miracle could write down the sounds for posterity that only he could hear in his head.

It was after the short interval that Filippo was reborn playing now with passionate abandon and total conviction as he assaulted the piano with the revolutionary opening of Wagner’s ‘Liebestod.’
Golden strands of knotty counterpoint were played with ravishing beauty and a clarity of orchestral proportions where he no longer had just ten fingers but a whole orchestra in his hands.Building to a climax of breathtaking power and passion this music had unleashed in Filippo a key to the Wagnerian world of genial fantasy and mastery.

The ‘Tannhäuser’ Overture has long been a showpiece for virtuoso pianist ,but it held no terror for Filippo who had now entered a world where technical difficulties just did not exist in his determination to transmit the ravishing beauty and sumptuous excesses of Wagners masterworks.
An ovation could be heard on the superb streaming ,that I was thankfully able to follow from afar, after a performance of breathtaking majesty and aristocratic mastery.
Chopin’s study op 10 n.11 was an encore where arpeggios were played like celestial harps with a sense of style and beauty but with a sound world that Filippo had shared with us in this second part of the recital with refined generosity.

Caro Chris mi fa molto piacere farti sapere che ieri il concerto di Filippo ha riportato un successo veramente strepitoso! grazie ancora per la segnalazione e un abbraccio.

Filippo Tenisci

Classe 1998, Filippo Tenisci ha recentemente curato l’incisione integrale delle trascrizioni Wagner/Liszt per la nota etichetta Da Vinci Publishing. 

Ha inoltre registrato la 2° Sinfonia di Beethoven nella trascendentale trascrizione di Franz Liszt per RAI 5 in occasione del Format Televisivo “UT Musica –Il Mascagni a Livorno”. 

Pianista attivo in Italia e in tutta Europa, nel 2024 ha esordito in veste di solista negli Stati Uniti d’America su invito della Art of the Piano Festival a San Francisco. Ha recentemente debuttato al Museo Teatrale della Scala a Milano nel 2024 e al Teatro Verdi di Pisa. 

Inoltre, in occasione della Festa della Repubblica Italiana 2023, su invito del Console Generale, si è esibito alla City Hall di Hong Kong, riscuotendo successo e approvazione da parte di tutto il pubblico. 

Vincitore di prestigiosi concorsi come il “Premio Crescendo” di Firenze, il “Dinu Lipatti” e il Premio “Franz Liszt” di Roma nel 2018, “Riga” Competition in Lettonia nel 2019 etc. 

Nel 2021 ha suonato con l’orchestra di Roma Tre eseguendo il Concerto n.15 K.450 di W.A. Mozart, sotto la direzione del M° Sieva Borzak. Sempre con Roma Tre Orchestra, nell’ambito del Baglini Project, ha interpretato con i pianisti Giuseppe Rossi e Maurizio Baglini ill concerto per 3 pianoforti e orchestra di W.A. Mozart. 

Si è diplomato nel 2022 presso il Conservatorio “Pietro Mascagni” di Livorno ed è in seguito stato eletto come Miglior Laureato Accademico 2021/22. 

Maggiori informazioni sul CV si possono trovare sul sito www.teniscifilippo.it 

Programma

Franz Liszt (Raiding 1811-Bayreuth, 1886)

Da “Années de Pèlerinage”

Deuxième Année Italie, S. 161

Sposalizio

Après une lecture du Dante 

*

Richard Wagner (Lipsia, 1813-Venezia, 1883)-

–Franz Liszt (Raiding 1811-Bayreuth, 1886)

Isolden’s Liebestod S. 447

Ouverture Zu Tannhäuser S. 442

Beethoven,Debussy and Schumann an outpouring of beautiful sounds in a church illuminated by candlelight for yet another concert for Warren Maille-Smith’s City Productions .

Tonight Rose Mc Lachlan was giving a concert for a special occasion that saw the remarkable McLachlan clan in London this weekend to celebrate a very special birthday.

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/09/15/rose-mclachlan-at-st-marys-another-jewel-in-the-crown-of-a-remarkable-family/

Kathryn Page McLachlan with her mother and husband Murray McLachlan https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2021/02/21/murray-mclachlan-at-st-marys/

Beethoven’s early op 2 n 2 Sonata dedicated to his teacher Haydn but already stamping his own genius on a now established form. Beethoven imbues this early sonata with remarkable dynamic contrasts and chameleonic changes of character that Rose played with a kaleidoscope of colours , rhythmic drive and technical mastery. From the opening question and answer to the orchestrally conceived slow movement and a Scherzo and trio of whimsical seriousness.The delicacy of the ending of the first movement preparing us for the solemn beauty of the ‘Largo appassionato’ with it’s beautifully held melodic line and the gentle non legato accompaniment played with superb control and of long beautiful lines of poignant significance.It is in the slow movements of these early sonatas that Beethoven shows his originality breaking away from his teacher Haydn and creating an art form of intensity and profundity.The next sonata in this trio of op 2 has a slow movement of enormous proportions as do the sonatas that immediately follow of op 7 and op 10 n. 3 .The elegance and charm that Rose brought to the Scherzo was contrasted with the dynamic drive of the Trio. It was though the last movement where Beethoven paints great elegant lines of charm and originality that Rose played with a superb sense of style as the music was allowed to flow with grace until interrupted by a typical Beethovenian outburst of irascible impatience.Rose played this rumbustious interruption with dynamic drive and rhythmic precision with fleeting finger work of pointed energy until with an elegant wave of the hand Beethoven takes us back to the grace and elegance of the Rondo.The playful question and answer between the left and the right hand that followed was played with bucolic joy as the strident chords returned again creating a brilliant contrast before the gentle ending of refreshing consolation.

Two Debussy Preludes were played with subtle beauty and sensitivity.Rose had chosen two from the second book of 12 Preludes :Bruyères and Ondine in this series where all twenty four will be played by six different pianists.It was simple beauty that she brought to the opening ‘Heather’ with its pastoral feeling of a gentle breeze blowing in a peaceful pastoral scene.The ending was beautifully played with the deep rumbling bass just adding an extra sense of calm to such a ravishing scene.’Ondine’ was a favourite of Artur Rubinstein and is a miniature tone poem of beauty, grace and menace. Rose played it with a kaleidoscope of sounds from the gentle opening and mellifluous waves of sound played with delicacy and improvised freedom as her poetic sensibility was ignited by such ravishing beauty.The gentle murmur that followed was every bit as beautiful as in ‘La Terrace des audiences du Clair de lune’ where Debussy can paint incredible beauty in sound. Rubinstein used to build up to a great swirling outburst at this point ( he had, after all, known the composer who perhaps shared his extrovert interpretation ) but Rose followed Debussy’s very precise instructions and remained in a magic world of glistening ravishing sounds that spread over the keys with featherlight radiance.

It was in Schumann’s Davidsbündler that Rose reached moments of sublime inspiration as she played with passionate abandon and a ravishing sense of balance, bringing this masterpiece vividly to life.The fourteenth,one of the most beautiful melodies that Schumann ever penned, was played with restrained beauty and subtle luminosity: ‘Zart un singend’.Coming after the passionate outpouring of the thirteenth where the central chorale was played with sumptuous full sound before the fleeting lightness and beguiling charm of the ending.The twelfth was thrown off with whimsical mastery and had followed the sublime simple beauty of Schumann at his most enigmatic.The Brahmsian ballade of the tenth was played with passionate orchestral sounds of Philadelphian sumptuousness.Rose had thrown herself into the ninth with fearless abandon where Schumann’s whimsical fancy is a trial for any pianist! The sixth dance was played with a technical mastery where Schumann’s most precise demands were interpreted with dynamic drive and intoxicating ‘joie de vivre’,this was Florestan at his most devilish! As was the passionate outburst of the fourth with a passionate outpouring no doubt with this beloved Clara in mind.The disarming simplicity of the fifth where Eusebius just looks at the beauty that surrounds him with nonchalant innocence.The opening too where Florestan and Eusebius combine with flights of imagination and subtle beauty where Rose played with great artistry and understanding and a technical control that could turn Schumann’s precise indications into such beautiful sounds.The grandiose beauty of the fifteenth was breathtaking in it’s sweep and passionate conviction but even here Rose managed to interpret Schumann’s indications with respectful mastery and musicianship.She even threw herself into the fray ‘Mit gutem Humor’ with masterly playing of precision and a chameleonic sense of character.The heavenly vision that appears on the horizon ‘Wie aus der Ferne’ showed Rose’s quite extraordinary poetic understanding of Schumann’s elusive wonderland.Magic sounds were whispered with glowing beauty in a mist of heavenly sounds as Eusebius returned in a master stroke of a genius before allowing Florestan the last word. The final nostalgic and desolate waltz was so movingly beautiful that the public dared not applaud and break such a magic spell.As Schumann says ‘Quite superfluously Eusebius remarked as follows:but all the time great bliss spoke from his eyes’.

‘A thing of beauty is a joy forever’ and a Rose is always a rose!

A sensitive radiant Rose shining brightly at the London Piano Festival 2024

Some exquisite playing of rare beauty from Kyle Hutchings, the troubadour of the piano.

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/09/11/kyle-hutchings-a-poetic-troubadour-of-the-piano-reveals-the-heart-of-mozartschubert-and-franck-the-keyboard-trust-concert-tour-of-adbaston-ischiaflorence-and-milan/

There was a radiance to the sound as the dynamic contrasts that Mozart marks were played with a sense of balance and proportion as indeed it must have sounded on a keyboard of that period.There was a softness to the sound where the ‘forte’ seemed to dissolve into ‘piano’ without ever disturbing the musical line.The arabesques played with the same subtle colour as a singer as the music moved forward with some quite exquisite playing of repeated notes that became mere vibrations accompanying the melodic line that could sing so naturally without any forced projection. Even the Allegro was played with restrained sounds where everything was in civilised proportion where ‘forte ‘ had a dramatic effect because the ‘piano’ answer was played with whispered delicacy and always perfectly in proportion with a radiant tone of glowing beauty.A melodic line played with beautiful phrasing and a rarely experienced sensibility. An Andantino that was an oasis of civilised conversation.Streams of notes in the Più Allegro with a disarming recitativo finishing in a miraculous whispered sigh making way for the reappearance of the imperious opening. An extraordinary sound world where everything was perfectly in proportion but without any apparent projection, allowing for the creation of a kaleidoscope of sounds of exquisite glowing purity as this young troubadour revealed the secrets hidden deep in his artistic fantasy world.

Franck’s haunting Prelude ,Fugue and Variation reverberated around this candlelit church creating a magic that will long be remembered. A transcription by the Scottish pianist Bauer it shows the improvisation quality of this piece written for organ with it’s magical opening theme floating in rarified air as it is transformed and in three movements that are united by the sublime beauty of this hauntingly beautiful melody.Here Kyle’s sense of architectural shape and uniting colouration took us on a wondrous journey where the sounds floated around this beautiful edifice with the same spiritual meaning that inspired Franck in his church of St Clotilde in Paris.

Three atmospheric pieces by Mompou ended the concert and where the glowing fluidity of his playing was filled with a languid beauty only to be relieved by an encore ,by great deman, of Schaefer’s beguiling transcription of a song by Rachmaninov.

An evening in which dreams became reality with music that was truly born on the ‘wings of song’

And just an hour later the remarkable Warren Mailley-Smith was playing The Trout Quintet whilst just next door skating was the order of the day at Somerset House https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/09/21/warren-mailley-smith-a-man-for-all-seasons-a-love-of-music-illuminated-by-candlelight/

Second of a series of four concerts in collaboration with the Keyboard Trust

The Strand Rising Stars Series – Sherri Lun The magic and artistry of a star shining brightly

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

Magdalene Ho A musical genius in Paradise

Some extraordinary playing from Eric Lu for the Richmond Concert Society where everything he played was touched with a refined sensibility to sound that made all he played seem so fresh and new.

Even the choice of Chopin’s very mysterious nocturne op 27 n 1 drew us into a secret world of whispered sounds where an extraordinary sense of balance allowed him to reveal rather than project the melodic line .Even the central episode entered from afar as it gradually built up to its polonaise climax .The passionate vehemence he gave to the left hand recitativo was even more overwhelming as so unexpected.Never a hard or ungrateful sound even in the most passionate outpourings and it was this that made his playing of Schubert’s last Impromptus a continuous stream of sublime song.

Everything he did was of the human voice even the operatic opening of the first impromptu that immediately dissolved into a murmur on which floated Schubert’s sublime melodic outpouring .A remarkable way of understating where a lesser artist might be assertive.The ravishing beauty of the cantilena streams of golden sounds was quite breathtaking. The A flat impromptu played with delicacy and poetic beauty as the mellifluous central episode was like a gentle wave that slowly enveloped us in it’s sumptuous warmth, with the opening melody returning as if a memory of a glorious dream.The theme and variations were played with a jeux perlé of golden sounds that just seemed to pour so naturally from this young artist’s refined fingers. The final F minor Impromptu I will never forget the frenzied excitement and breathtaking, fearless abandon of Serkin . Today Eric Lu gave a more poetic view where frenzy was tempered by poetic sensibility .

It was in the three Mazurkas by Chopin that Eric Lu found his world of true wonderment. A fantasy and temperament that brought these ‘canons covered in flowers’ vividly to life with quite extraordinary imagination and it’s insinuating sense of dance linked to the Polish soul laid bare .

“Leeds winner Eric Lu showed an astonishing command of keyboard tone and color.. the sign he is already a true artist. It was a spellbinding experience.”– The Guardian

“Lu’s playing is in a rare class – sensitive and emotionally intuitive.” – BBC Music Magazine

Eric Lu won First Prize at The Leeds International Piano Competition in 2018 at the age of 20. The following year, he signed an exclusive contract with Warner Classics, and has since collaborated with some of the world’s most prestigious orchestras, and presented in major recital venues.

Recent and forthcoming orchestral collaborations include the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra, Boston Symphony Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Oslo Philharmonic, Orchestre Philharmonique du Luxembourg, Royal Stockholm Philharmonic, Orchestre National de Lille, Finnish Radio Symphony, Yomiuri Nippon Symphony, Seattle Symphony, Helsinki Philharmonic, Royal Philharmonic, Tokyo Symphony, Shanghai Symphony at the BBC Proms, amongst others. Conductors he collaborates with include Riccardo Muti, Mirga Gražinytė-Tyla, Ryan Bancroft, Marin Alsop, Duncan Ward, Vasily Petrenko, Edward Gardner, Sir Mark Elder, Thomas Dausgaard, Ruth Reinhardt, Earl Lee, Kerem Hasan, Nuno Coehlo, Dinis Sousa, and Martin Frӧst.

Active as a recitalist, he is presented on stages including the Köln Philharmonie, Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Queen Elizabeth Hall London, Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, Leipzig Gewandhaus, San Francisco Davies Hall, BOZAR Brussels, Fondation Louis Vuitton Paris, 92nd St Y, Aspen Music Festival, Seoul Arts Centre, Warsaw Philharmonic Hall, and Sala São Paulo. In 2025, he is appearing for the 7th consecutive year in recital at Wigmore Hall London. He has also been invited for the 7th time to Warsaw’s ‘Chopin and his Europe Festival’ and made his debut at La Roque-d’Anthéron Festival.

Eric’s third album on Warner Classics was released in December 2022, featuring Schubert Sonatas D. 959 and 784. It was met with worldwide critical acclaim, receiving BBC Music Magazine’s Instrumental Choice, writing, “Lu’s place among today’s Schubertians is confirmed”. His previous album of the Chopin 24 Preludes, and Schumann’s Geistervariationen was hailed ‘truly magical’ by International Piano.

Born in Massachusetts in 1997, Eric Lu first came to international attention as a Laureate of the 2015 Chopin International Competition in Warsaw aged just 17. He was also awarded the International German Piano Award in 2017, and Avery Fisher Career Grant in 2021. Eric was a BBC New Generation Artist from 2019-22. He is a graduate of the Curtis Institute of Music, studying with Robert McDonald and Jonathan Biss. He was also a pupil of Dang Thai Son.

More remarkable playing from this young Ucrainian pianist only 19 years old, playing with extraordinary mastery and mature musical understanding.
Mozart,Debussy and Chopin were all treated to her glowing fluid playing where every phrase was imbued with rare musical meaning.A beauty of sound from fingers that like limpets could suck the meaning from each note with a kaleidoscope of ravishing sounds.A technical mastery that allowed her to dig deep into the architectural shape of each work as she could shape so fearlessly even the most challenging music.

Mozart’s Fantasia where drama and beauty combine with it’s imperious opening with a purity and luminosity of sound contrasting with the dynamic fearless drive of the Allegro. A sense of weight without hardness brought Mozart’s very precise dynamic markings vividly to life with a sense of orchestral colour where even the rests had an important part to play in a musical conversation of extraordinary beauty and startling originality. Even the contrast between legato and staccato was of orchestral proportions where the staccato was more an expressive non legato that she phrased with such sensibility.The Allegro that made such a dramatic entrance was played with remarkable solidity with the imposing bass declamations answered by the beseeching elegance of the reply. It expanded to a beautiful melodic outpouring of aristocratic good taste and style with the imposing left hand returning to take us to the cadenza played with nobility to the bottom of the keyboard where it took flight chromatically for the gentle preparation of the Andantino. Again another question and answer of operatic proportions gradually spread over the entire keyboard finishing on high before the eruption of the Più Allegro. Playing of masterly weight and rhythmic precision gradually dissolving into a series of arpeggiandi interspersed with calming chords ending in the whispered hights.The silence that followed was indeed pregnant with expectation as the imposing opening returned with ever more dramatic contrasts before the final scale that shot from the bass to the final chord on high.A remarkably mature performance of style and controlled passion.

The desolation of Debussy’s Footprints in the snow was played with an extraordinary maturity of musical line with it’s gently insistent footsteps proceeding in whispered tones of ‘piano’ and ‘pianissimo’ but which Khrystyna managed to give an architectural shape to with a kaleidoscope of colours that illuminated this trail of emptiness with extraordinary sensitivity.The clarity and character she brought to the West wind showed off her complete technical mastery and a fantasy that brought this extraordinary tone poem vividly to life.Quite extraordinary explosions of sound with some transcendental playing of astonishing precision and clarity where the insistent repeated notes created a hypnotic background to a melody ‘main en dehorn et angoissé it built to a tumultuous climax of extraordinary mastery, with the swirling whirlwind of sounds just pouring out of her fingers with amazing control and subtle colouring.The amazing crash of the waves at the end just prepared the way for the clear mist of sound out of which emerged the Sunken Cathedral . An aristocratic poise as the sunken cathedral made its emergence from the depths appearing in all it’s glory. A plain chant is heard with the tolling of bells as the gently rumbling bass prepared the scene, as the cathedral descended once more into the depths with wondrous magical sounds.
Fireworks I have rarely heard played with such clarity but also a vaste range of colours which showed her total mastery of the pedals. A remarkable control of sound allowed the Marseillaise to ring out above the smoke with glowing radiance after a most extraordinary exhibition of fireworks . I have never heard the sparkle of the fireworks ,as they shot off in all directions ,played with such precision over a mist of quite extraordinary clarity all played in pianissimo! A tour de force of technical mastery which gradually lead to the swirls of notes that enveloped the atmosphere with fireworks erupting with great insistence.A scherzando played with dynamic drive dissolving into a beautifully elegant series of arabesques before the final eruptions dying away to a whisper ‘de tres loin.

Chopin’s B flat minor Sonata showed off her remarkable musicianship where the second subject was allowed to emerge so naturally with sumptuous beauty and disarming simplicity.The opening introduction was not repeated but was transformed into a menacing development of passionate outpourings.
The Scherzo showed off her crystalline technical perfection as she allowed the music to unfold fearlessly and the trio to sing so eloquently.
Her youthful passion almost took over in the Funeral March which she obviously felt very deeply but it might have been even more expressive if she had played it with the same simplicity that she brought to the other movements.Of course the perpetuum mobile of the wind blowing over the graves held no terror for this young lady who brought this masterpiece to a tumultuous conclusion.

Khrystyna Mykhailichenko is a young Ukrainian pianist who was born in Crimea. She began to play the piano when she was four. Within six years, she was winning international piano competitions and was performing in concerts throughout Europe and in the USA. The venues include Salle Cortot in Paris, Bozar Hall in Brussels, the Music Academies of Bruges, Antwerp, Krakow, Bremen, Gariunu concert hall in Vilnius, the University of Miami and Broward Centre for the Performing Arts, the World Bank in Washington DC, the UN residence in New York and all the National Philharmonics of Ukraine. Her repertoire includes major piano concertos by Rachmaninov, Beethoven, Brahms, Liszt and a wide variety of solo recital’s programme. At the outbreak of war in February 2022, she fled to Poland with her mother and sister before settling in the North East of the UK in June. As well as continuing to travel extensively for performances, she studied at the Junior RNCM under Graham Scott. She won a full scholarship from the Royal Academy of Music in London and has started her undergraduate course there in September 2023 under professor Joanna MacGregor. Jonathan Freeman-Attwood, the Royal Academy’s principal, said: “Khrystyna Mykhailichenko is an extraordinary talent of rare maturity for her age. She came and played the Chopin Ballade No 1 to me recently and revealed what a serious artist she is, almost as if the burdens of a hard life were being channelled through her playing. This was well beyond the carefree virtuosity one hears in this piece so often. It also had real grip and originality.” https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2023/10/24/khrystyna-mykhailichenko-at-st-marys-mature-artistry-and-refined-musicianship-of-a-great-pianist-in-the-making/

The indomitable Marcella Crudeli will celebrate her 33rd Rome International Piano Competition tonight with the final prize winner’s concert in the beautiful Oratorio del Caravita in the centre of Rome.

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2021/07/31/sorrento-crowns-marcella-crudeli-a-lifetime-in-music/

The first prize winner Artem Kuznetsov will play the Tchaikowsky B flat minor concerto under the expert baton of Filippo Mancini .From the first imperious notes it was obvious that here was a pianist from the great Russian school who could play with weight and passion.

The ‘Emperor’ concerto will be shared by second prize winner Zvjezdan Vojvodic and third prize Pierpaolo Buggiani,who also got the prize for the youngest competitor and at only 18 is a talent to watch out for in the future with beauty of sound and stylish expressive playing.

Vojvodic is a twenty one year old artist who feels the music passionately but needs now to listen more carefully to the sounds he is making but his true love for the music is something to cherish, but also control.

There are many other categories and prizes to be shared tonight and with this beautiful Oratorio sold out it should create the excitement and heat that was sadly lacking this morning !

The final will be streamed live and hats off to Marcella and her team who have maintained the only International Piano Competition in the Eternal City that was home to Carlo Zecchi and Guido Agosti, two of the most important figures in the history of the piano.

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2023/10/17/roma-international-piano-competition-recital-by-emanuele-savron-a-giant-bestrides-the-capitoline-hill-in-rome/

The jury with the three finalists at the morning rehearsal for the evening Gala Concert

Marcella Crudeli with a member of the Cuomo Foundation.

Maestro Filippo Manci

The beautiful Oratorio del Caravita

Prof Franco Carlo Ricci with Maestro Alberto Urroz

‘Ballando con le Stelle’ ‘Marcella Crudeli ed Emanuele Savron could have danced all night!’for Roma 3 Orchestra Concert Season

Born in 2002, Misha Kaploukhii is an alumnus of the Moscow Gnessin College of Music where he studied with Mikhail Egiazaryan. He has recently completed his undergraduate studies at the Royal College of Music where he studies with Ian Jones and he has now been chosen as one of the recipients of the prestigious LSO Conservatoire Scholarships, 2024/5 which will include support and professional development along with coaching and performance opportunities.

He has performed in the UK, Italy and France at the venues including the Cadogan Hall, and St James’ Piccadilly as well as recitals for William Walton Foundation in Ischia and at the Perugia Music Festival.

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

Misha Kaploukhii at St James’s Piccadilly.The intelligence and maturity of a young master

‘An ovation as rarely heard at St James’s greeted this young artist headed for the heights.’

Programme:

Beethoven: Eleven Bagatelles Op. 119 

Giacinto Scelsi: Suite No. 11, Cinquiême mouvement

Prokofiev: Piano Sonata No.4 Op. 29 

Messiaen: Regards sur l’Enfant-Jésus No.15: Le Baiser de l’Enfant-Jésus

Godowsky-Strauss: Symphonic Metamorphosis on “Die Fledermaus”

This concert is promoted by the Keyboard Trust with special funding from the Robert Turnbull Piano Foundation.   

The Robert Turnbull Piano Foundation annually awards grants to young classical pianists of all nationalities at the start of their professional careers. It has a global reach, reflecting not only Robert’s devotion to music but also his lifelong passion for travel. 

A room with a view in Florence for Misha Kaploukhii filling the Harold Acton library with some astonishingly refined playing on a Bechstein of 1890.

He managed to dig deep to find the still noble soul of this vintage instrument where the multi faceted Bagatelles op 119 that Beethoven late in life could create of such miniature tone poems were brought to life with extraordinary character. Very measured but also very lyrical with the beautifully shaped second with its civilised question and answer between the hands and the charm of the third and the extraordinary lyricism of the fourth. A dynamic drive of the fifth with it’s spirited dance character followed by the quasi improvised beauty of the sixth. A handful of crazy notes in crescendoing abundance was followed by the charm of expanding arpeggios of sheer delight and the shortest piece ever that was just like a wind blowing over the keys as the last bagatelle opened with the poignant outpouring of a hymn to life.

Even the mysterious sound world of Scelsi was played with a kaleidoscope of sounds, whispered and barely audible hypnotic repeated notes building in rhythmic energy with a jumble of sounds of Bartokian contrast and explosions of atomic proportions with animal animations.
Messiaen’s ‘Kiss of the baby Jesus’ filled this beautiful library with ethereal sounds of masterly control and ravishing radiant beauty reaching for the emphatic deeply felt passion of a true believer.The ending was played with incredible control of sound , the radiance of bells pealing on high as the gentle opening prayer was accompanied by a whispered trail of barely audible strands of gold. The final two chords placed with the poignant timing of a true master. It contrasted with the brooding opening of Prokofiev’s Fourth Sonata with it’s startling range of sounds of dramatic effect. An Andante too with etherial sounds of great beauty. The last movement suddenly bursting into life with a dynamic drive and exhilarating ‘joie de vivre’ after Prokofiev’s deep contemplation of the tragic death of a dear friend .

But it was Godowsky’s scintillating arabesques that he wraps around Strauss’s Die Fledermaus that showed the mastery of this twenty one year old virtuoso. A sense of style from a past era when pianists could ignite the keyboard with ravishing sounds that could seduce and excite with displays of astonishing technical mastery as they turned baubles into gems .
And gems they certainly were in Misha’s hands as the audience listened with astonished delight to such an exhilarating display of ‘carefully manicured bad taste ‘. Godowsky suffered from stage fright but all those that heard him in his studio never forgot what they heard.’There is nothing like it in the world’ Hoffman declared and Arrau considered him one of ‘the greatest technicians of all time.’ Rubinstein simply stated that it would take him five hundred years to acquire a mechanism like Godowsky’s!

An encore that just underlined the eclectic musicianship of this young musician as Greensleeves resounded amid the intricate beauty of Busoni’s elaborate invention .

Misha Kaploukhii at the Razumovsky Academy with technical mastery and poetic sensitivity

Sergei Prokofiev’s  Piano Sonata No. 4 in C minor, Op. 29, subtitled D’après des vieux cahiers, or After Old Notebooks, was composed in 1917 and premiered on April 17 the next year by the composer himself in Petrograd The work was dedicated to Prokofiev’s late friend Maximilian Schmidthof, whose suicide in 1913 had shocked and saddened the composer.

1. Allegro molto sostenuto 
2. Andante assai 
3. Allegro con brio,ma non leggiero 

In his notes accompanying the full set of recordings of Prokofiev’s sonatas by  Boris Berman David Fanning states the following:

Whether the restrained, even brooding quality of much of the Fourth Sonata relates in any direct way to Schmidthof’s death is uncertain, but it is certainly striking that the first two movements both start gloomily in the piano’s low register. Allegro molto sostenuto is the intriguing and apt marking for the first, in which a hesitant and uncertain mood prevails – the reverse of Prokofiev’s usual self-confidence. The Andante assai second movement alternates between progressively more elaborate statements of the opening theme and a nostalgic lyrical episode reminiscent of a Rachmaninov  Etude-tableau; finally the two themes are heard in combination. With the rumbustious finale Prokofiev seems to be feeling himself again. But for all the gymnastics with which the main theme is varied there is less showiness in this essentially rather introvert work than in any of the other piano sonatas.

The Eleven Bagatelles , Op. 119 were written  between the 1790s and the early 1820s.

By the end of 1803, Beethoven had already sketched bagatelles Nos. 1 to 5 (along with several other short works for piano that he never published). In 1820, he first finished the last five bagatelles of Op. 119, and published them as a set of five in June 1821 for  Wiener Pianoforteschule Schule by Friedrich Stark.The following year, he revised his old bagatelle sketches to construct a new collection for publication, adding a final bagatelle, No. 6, composed in late 1822.Initially Beethoven struggled to get a deal to publish any of the bagatelles Beethoven met with many people such as Peters of Leipzig and Pacini in Paris for publishing, who declined his request. Eventually Beethoven managed to have the entire set published: first by Clementi in London in 1823, Maurice Schlesinger in Paris some time around the end of 1823, and Sauer & Leidesdorf in Vienna on in April 1824. It is unclear to what degree this represents the composer’s intentions. 

Some scholars have argued that the two halves of Op. 119 — Nos. 1 to 6, and Nos. 7 to 11 — are best thought of as separate collections. However, it is also possible that when Beethoven composed No. 6 in late 1822, he had already planned to send all eleven pieces to England. In that case, No. 6 would not be meant as a conclusion to the first five, but as a way to connect them with the latter five. The key relationship and thematic similarities between No. 6 and No. 7 support this hypothesis, as does the fact that in subsequent correspondence, Beethoven expressed only satisfaction with how the bagatelles were published in England after his ex-pupil Ferdinand Ries  helped get the collection published.

Born in the village of Pitelli near La Spezia , Scelsi spent most of his time in his mother’s old castle where he received education from a private tutor who taught him Latin, chess and fencing. Later, his family moved to Rome and his musical talents were encouraged by private lessons with  Giacinto Sallustio . In Vienna, he studied with Walther Klein , a pupil of Arnold Schoenberg . He became the first exponent of dodecaphony in Italy, although he did not continue to use this system.He is best known for having composed music based around only one pitch , altered in all manners through microtonal oscillations , harmonic allusions, and changes in timbre and dynamics,as paradigmatically exemplified in his Quattro pezzi su una nota sola (“Four Pieces on a single note”, 1959).This composition remains his most famous work and one of the few performed to significant recognition during his lifetime. His musical output, which encompassed all Western classical genres except scenic music, remained largely undiscovered even within contemporary musical circles during most of his life. Today, some of his music has gained popularity in certain postmodern composition circles, with pieces like his “Anahit” and his String Quartets rising to increased prominence. The music of Scelsi was heard by millions in martin Scorsese’s Shutter Island , in which excerpts of his two works Quattro pezzi su una nota sola and Uaxuctum (3rd movement) .The suite n 11 was written in 1956 in Scelsi’s second period ( four periods are 1929/48 – 1952/59 – 1960/69 – 1970/85)

In Rome after the war, his wife left him (eventually inspiring Elegia per Ty), and he underwent a profound psychological crisis that eventually led him to the discovery of Eastern spirituality, and also to a radical transformation of his view of music. In this so-called second period , he rejected the notions of composition and authorship in favour of sheer improvisation . His improvisations were recorded on tape and later transcribed by collaborators under his guidance. They were then orchestrated and filled out by his meticulous performance instructions, or adjusted from time to time in close collaboration with the performers.Scelsi came to conceive of artistic creation as a means of communicating a higher, transcendent reality to the listener. In this view, the artist is considered a mere intermediary. For this reason, Scelsi never allowed his image to be shown in connection with his music; he preferred instead to identify himself by a line under a circle, as a symbol of Eastern provenance. Some photographs of Scelsi have emerged since his death.

In the three great Strauss transcriptions, Godowsky elevated the art of the piano paraphrase to a higher musical and pianistic plane; however their extreme technical difficulty remains a striking feature and places them out of the reach of ordinary pianists. The legendary pianist Leopold Godowsky (1870-1937) used to wow ‘em at concerts with these transcriptions of favorite tunes by the waltz king, and, in a delightful feat of anachronistic bravura. The quartet of arrangements–based on material from “Fledermaus,” “Wine, Woman and Song,” “Artist’s Life” and the “Symphonic Metamorphosis of the Schatz-Walzer Themes from ‘Zigeunerbaron’ For Left Hand Alone”–trades in sudden plunges into the minor, thick contrapuntal textures, excessive melodic embellishments and arpeggios for days. But these paraphrases truly retain the soul of the waltz. As a study in carefully manicured bad taste, this collection has few rivals.

As a composer, Godowsky has been best known for his paraphrases of piano pieces by other composers, which he enhanced with ingenious contrapuntal devices and rich chromatic harmonies. His most famous work in this genre is the 53 Studies on Chopin’s Etudes  (1894–1914), in which he varies the (already challenging) original études using various methods: introducing countermelodies , transferring the technically difficult passages from the right hand to the left, transcribing an entire piece for left hand solo, or even interweaving two études, with the left hand playing one and the right hand the other.Although his transcriptions are much more well known, Godowsky also composed a number of substantial original works. He considered the Passacaglia  (1927) and a collection of pieces for left hand alone (1930–31) to be his most mature creations; both, however, employ traditional approach to harmony and counterpoint. A more experimental work was the Java Suite  (Phonoramas) (1925), composed after a visit to Java, under the influence of gamelan  music. Godowsky was equally comfortable writing large-scale works like the Passacaglia or the five-movement Piano Sonata in E minor (1911) as he was creating collections of smaller pieces, such as the 46 Miniatures for piano four hands and the Triakontameron (1920; subtitled “30 moods and scenes in triple measure”).

Although he regularly played public concerts until 1930, Godowsky was plagued by stage fright , and particularly disliked the recording studio, like many performers of his time. On one occasion, he described the recording process thus:

‘The fear of doing a trifling wrong augmented while playing; the better one succeeded in playing the foregoing, the greater the fear became while playing. It was a dreadful ordeal, increasingly so the more sensitive the artist, I broke down in my health in London in the Spring of 1930, owing to these nerve-killing tortures. How can one think of emotion!^’

Consequently, it was acknowledged that Godowsky’s best work was not in public or in the recording studio, but at home. After leaving Godowsky’s home one night, Josef Hofmann  told Abram Chasins: “Never forget what you heard tonight; never lose the memory of that sound. There is nothing like it in the world. It is tragic that the world has never heard Popsy as only he can play.”Claudio Arrau ,declared Godowsky “one of the greatest technicians”, even though he considered his playing “boring” and complained that Godowsky “never played above mezzo-forte.” Artur Rubinstein simple stated that it would take him “five hundred years to get a mechanism like Godowsky’s”.

The Vingt Regards sur l’Enfant-Jésus (“Twenty Contemplations on the Infant Jesus”) are a suite of 20 pieces for solo piano by the French composer Olivier Messiaen  (1908–1992).It was composed from March to September of 1944 following a January commission by Maurice Toesca wishing for a reading of his twelve poems on the nativity. The abandoned plan was later reworked with a dedication to his protégée Yvonne Loriod

1. Regard du Père (“Contemplation of the Father”)
2. Regard de l’étoile (“Contemplation of the star”)
3. L’échange (“The exchange”)
4. Regard de la Vierge (“Contemplation of the Virgin”)
5. Regard du Fils sur le Fils (“Contemplation of the Son upon the Son”)
6. Par Lui tout a été fait (“Through Him everything was made”)
7. Regard de la Croix (“Contemplation of the Cross”)
8. Regard des hauteurs (“Contemplation of the heights”)
9. Regard du temps (“Contemplation of time”)
10. Regard de l’Esprit de joie (“Contemplation of the joyful Spirit”)
11. Première communion de la Vierge (“The Virgin’s first communion”)
12. La parole toute-puissante (“The all-powerful word”)
13. Noël (“Christmas”)
14. Regard des Anges (“Contemplation of the Angels”)
15. Le baiser de l’Enfant-Jésus (“The kiss of the Infant Jesus”)
16. Regard des prophètes, des bergers et des Mages (“Contemplation of the prophets, the shepherds and the Magi”)
17. Regard du silence (“Contemplation of silence”)
18. Regard de l’Onction terrible (“Contemplation of the awesome Anointing”)
19. Je dors, mais mon cœur veille (“I sleep, but my heart keeps watch”)
20. Regard de l’Eglise d’amour (“Contemplation of the Church of love”)

Messiaen uses Thèmes or leitmotifs , recurring elements that represent certain ideas. They include:

• Thème de Dieu (“Theme of God”)
• Thème de l’amour mystique (“Theme of Mystical Love”)
• Thème de l’étoile et de la croix (“Theme of the Star and of the Cross”)
• Thème d’accords (“Theme of Chords”)

Jeremy Chan at Steinway Hall London for the Keyboard Trust where his eclectic programme of the four Bs made for a box office success: Bach,Beethoven Brahms and Barber!
Bach as seen through the eyes of Rachmaninov and Beethoven particularly genial with the only Sonata that he was happy to add a title to describing a sad departure but also the glad return.
Brahms with four of his most poignantly ethereal and imperious miniature tone poems and Barber with demonic knotty twine that only Horowitz could completely hope to unwind.

An audience that included two of the KT artistic directors (the third is at Steinways in Milan to present Misha Kaploukhii to the Italian public ) who were happy to interrogate and converse with this young musician who I had heard just a month ago with the same programme:
https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/09/19/jeremy-chan-at-st-olaves-tower-hill-with-playing-of-commanding-authority-and-towering-musicianship/

Elena Vorotko writes :’ I thought Jeremy was rather good last night, definitely had something to say and rather beautiful/poetic in all the right places, made a rather hoarse piano sound rather beautiful. I thought he held back the volume skillfully without lacking contrast till he got to Barber and the let loose, rather rightly. I thought there was clarity overall and great attention to articulation and textural detail. I sat in front row with Garo from the Pharos Cultural Centre in Cyprus who really liked Jeremy’s playing ‘

‘The London Steinway Hall was buzzing with anticipation! The audience for this sold out concert included celebrated musicians, concert organisers and critics, taking the temperature up a notch for the evening’s performer- Jeremy Chan.

With the first notes of the Bach/Rachmaninov transcription one could feel Jeremy’s eager involvement in the music. While keeping to traditional norms of rolling beat and articulation, he indulged his public in cleverly voiced, clear tapestry of polyphony, sprinkling new iterations of the theme with new colours. Letting us enjoy Rachmaninov’s signature harmonies here and there, Jeremy created a playful character that was both charming and fun.

The Beethoven ‘Les Adieux’ sonata, so called by the composer himself, appeared like a triptych of related, but strongly contrasting movements. The poised flow of the musical narrative allowed the audience time to be present in the music. Full of colours and characterful articulation, the first movement portrayed worrysome anticipation rather effectively! The second movement was very moving in its simple, immediate and genuine expression. Mournful intonations were contrasted with the joyful episodes not only in volume, but sound quality and balance of textures, creating a fully immersive effect for the audience. Jeremy took us on a journey of dealing with grief, which resolved by transforming into the sound of distant celestial bells. The volume of the third movement was pleasantly well judged, at least for those seated in the front row – only about 2 metres away from the piano! Jeremy opted for bright and light sonorities, never pounding as can be easily done in this exciting piece. It seemed that he kept the general dynamic range relatively narrow, saving the greatest volume for what was to come later in the programme.

If one has not noticed this before, in Brahms it became particularly clear, just how much Jeremy loves music- loves creating beautful sonorities, that merge and transform into one-another while floating in the air. Loves making those phrases speak, loves playing with those textures, loves communicating through sound and making music a vivid reality for his listeners. The B minor intermezzo was beautifully played on the piano, that could easily sound hoarse and forced in the relatively small Steinway Hall. It is a true test for the pianist to be able to tame the glorious beast of a Steinway model D when the audience is breathing down your neck. But nobody was actually breathing, everyone held their breath in anticipation of every new sound Jeremy was creating. He made his soul sing through his fingers in an intimate and direct way and took our souls along with him.

The Barber Sonata was a sparkling kaleidoscope of emotions. With the grand structure thought through and realised, every detail supported the narrative arch and gripped the audience from start to end. When I asked some audience members what they enjoyed the most, quite a lot of them said- “ Barber”! But it was not just loud and fast and impressive, it was interesting, enlightening and beautiful. I loved the attention to textures in all works played by Jeremy that evening. His intellect shone through but did not get in the way of his heart, a rare balance to find in any human, let alone a musician! Bravo, Jeremy!’

I was sorry to miss a chance to hear Jeremy’s concert again but even sorrier to miss the fun and games afterwards.
The KT, thanks to the generosity of Steinway’s, encourages the public to mix and get to know some of the strains and struggles of these young musicians as they spend their youth reaching for the stars.
Also a chance to try some of the designer pianos that Steinways are presenting to the world with such success.

Elena Vorotko was particularly inspired by the Walt Disney piano on display in the shop window.
Let’s not forget that it is thanks to Tom and Jerry who bequeathed the inspiration of Lang Lang to the millions of unsuspecting musicians that we now see emerging from China and more importantly buying pianos.It is the Lang Lang Foundation like the Keyboard Trust that so generously helps young musicians to survive and thrive on those first few steps of a ladder as long and thorny as a beanstalk!

Sigfrid Karg-Elert (1877-1933)P Sonate in B-dur op. 121 for flute and piano

Alexander Scriabian (1872-1915):

Desire op. 57
Danced caress op. 57, no. 2
Poem op. 32, no. 1
Etude op. 56, no. 4

Friedrich Kuhlau (1786-1832): Divertissement op. 68, no. 6 in C-Sharp
minor for flute solo
2. Dick Kattenburg (1919-1944): Sonata for flute and piano op.5
3. George Hüe (1858-1948) : Fantasie pour flûte et piano

Presented in association with Tunbridge Wells International Music Competition.

Russian flutist Maria Filippova made her concerto debut with the Symphony Orchestra of Nizhni Novgorod under the baton of Renat Zhiganshin in 2008. She has since performed in numerous concert halls across Russia and Europe. Over the years, Maria has performed as a soloist with several esteemed orchestras, including the Symphony Orchestra of Moscow state Philharmonic Society, Symphony Orchestra of Czech radio, Symphony Orchestra of Nizhniy Novgorod state Philharmonic Society named after M. Rostropovitch and various Municipal chamber orchestras across Russia. As an orchestral player Maria has extensive experience playing as part of the English-leading orchestras and ensembles and had a privilege to perform in various prestigious venues such as Cadogan Hall, Barbican Centre, Wigmore Hall and Royal Albert Hall. During her studies Maria became a laureate of the regional, all-Russia and international competitions more than once. In 2014, aged 14, Maria became the winner of the Nutcracker Television Competition and the Concertino-Praga Competition, where her gala performance was broadcast on Czech Radio. Since then, Maria was overall Grand Prix Laureate at the Gnessin Competition in Moscow, received a gold medal of the Delphic Games in Vladivostok and also became a finalist of the Moscow International Flute Competition, where she performed her program of the third round in the Great Hall of the Moscow Conservatory. In 2024 she became a winner of a Tunbridge Wells International Music Competition. This year Maria will be undertaking the Artist Diploma course at RCM supported by The Carne Junior Fellowship (Philip Carne) and the Neil Black award (Countess of Munster Musical Trust).