Indeed, Jules. My next target is Martha Argerich.

I would love to hear her play the Rach 3 as it's astonishingly complex and she plays it so well in her recording.

Has he made an announcement, Jules?

Shame, but he did look frail and the one concerto plus encore looked like it took a lot out of him.

I feel very lucky.

Lucky you. There's another giant in his twilight years. Enjoy!

Barbican 14 March 2019

Dvorak Violin Concerto
Mahler Symphony 4

London Symphony Orchestra
Isabelle Faust, violin
Bernard Haitink

Wonderful to see every seat occupied for an evening to celebrate the 90th birthday and remarkable career of the great Bernard Haitink.

I was particularly looking forward to seeing Ms Faust perform as she is certainly firmly ensconced in that upper echelon of supremely talented female violinists. She did not disappoint, but this was not the Dvorak as I know it - we were treated to a highly potent, vibrant, and urgent performance of this favourite concerto. Her opening salvos were fired off with such powerful intent, each ending with extravagant flourishes of the bow; I knew we were going to enjoy a highly idiomatic reading. A most physical performer and even when unleashing her fullest vibrato, there was no saccharine edge to the music, whilst the slower sections were endowed with such nobility. Her playing in the upper registers, even when startlingly hushed, is bestowed with a wonderfully pure, almost crystalline tone from her 1704 Stradivarius known as the ‘Sleeping Beauty Violin.’  But there was no snoozing to be done here - the finale was deliciously light, lithe and playful; truly joyful and uplifting music, thoroughly befitting this special evening. The LSO were entirely on the same page as Ms Faust, offering full blooded support throughout. How delicious, and entirely satisfying as an hors d’oeuvre or a main course, it was devoured gleefully by a rapt audience.

I must admit that I did have a little trepidation about sitting through the Mahler but I quickly had to put old prejudices aside. From the opening Troika like sleigh bells, I was thoroughly entranced by this intricate and complex work which seems to be the journey of life itself. I imagined myself navigating a monolithic labyrinth in which one moment walking towards salvation and light, but with one wrong turn hurtling towards the edge of darkness, urged on by those throbbing double basses. You are never allowed to settle emotionally through these twists and turns, just as you think the music is going to find a groove thematically and melodically, you are whisked away in a heartbeat through this dreamlike fairy tale and its wonders and horrors. Haitink guides you so gently and smoothly through the work, with an almost effortless clarity and purity, that you become aware of so much detail and colour throughout the orchestra. The final movement featured a replacement soprano, Sally Matthews, but I won’t dwell on this as I really struggled to engage with her performance.

As the evening drew to a close, if ever there was a time for a standing ovation, surely this would be it and I have to say everyone rose to their feet accordingly.

This evening I was in the presence of greatness.

Musical salvation is mine.  

1 April 2019

Khatia Buniatishvili in recital
Barbican

Schubert Sonata in B-flat major, D960
Standchen (arr Liszt)
Gretchen am Spinnrade (arr Liszt)
Erlkönig (arr Liszt)
Liszt Transcendental Étude No 4 in D minor, Mazeppa
Hungarian Rhapsody No 6

The Silent Explosion.

When is silence as powerful as music? Well in this performance of D960 I would say it was. It will probably divide opinion in that it was not played with any great outward emotion; if you prefer your lilies to be gilded you will need to look elsewhere for inspiration. But you mustn’t mistake this for nonchalance or sangfroid. Quite the opposite - it was so, so delicately understated and tender, whilst expressing what I might term a solemn introspection. And it’s here that the exquisite musical timing, those moments of rapt silence, became so important and expressive. I have to be honest - as a whole this work is not one that speaks to me greatly on a musical level, but I became more and more appreciative of the approach that was taken. Only towards the end of the work do we even get a hint of the vast reserves of power that Ms Buniatishvili possesses.

After the interval the touch paper was lit. Sometimes it’s easier to talk a great deal about a performance that isn’t quite right rather than one that is supreme; the rest of the recital was as close to perfect for me as I can imagine. I experienced that ‘full immersion’ you hope for at a concert, as I became lost in the LSO - Listztian Sensory Overload. It was lovely to hear my son say after the sublimely wrought urgings of Standchen (see film below) something like ‘Find me that music please!’ It seems he is keen to learn it and am just so pleased he found a connection here. And of course what is there not to like about Schubert / Liszt played this way? An utterly rapt audience enjoyed mesmerising delicacy and lightness of touch married to effortlessly lithe and sweeping lyricism, with searing dynamics the length and breadth of the keyboard. It’s this that I enjoyed so much about her bionic Rach 2 (another performance that will divide the critics), I don’t think there’s anyone else that has this profound touch and grasp of macrodynamics at such dizzying speeds. Such fearsome technique.

But let’s be clear, it’s not about indulgent and shallow displays of ‘virtuosity’, it’s to do with an innate musicality drawing you deep into the music and the emotions evoked. In terms of the sheer weight and clarity of tone, was this a very special Steinway or a very special pianist? I think you can guess. I also love the rapport she enjoys with the audience. She would sometimes stand up to briefly take applause and acknowledge the audience in between works; whilst the clapping was still ringing out she would sit down and start playing immediately in one swift and seamless movement.

After a fully deserved standing ovation and three bouquets of flowers, we were treated to two ravishing encores including a generous helping of the crowd-pleasing fireworks of Hungarian Rhapsody No2, a quite perfectly mesmeric dessert.  Now that's how to finish a recital.

Two non-musical matters I wish to report on. Firstly, the concert started 10 minutes late, not a problem for me but it was for some. Just as our soloist was taking her seat, I heard arguing outside the rear doors from people demanding to take their seats, but the workers on the door were quite rightly standing firm. It was somewhat tense and I actually thought it was going to briefly interrupt the start of the concert at one point. The other intrusion was that two rows in front of us we had serial ‘coughers’. Every time one particular lady coughed there was a lady immediately front of her who turned round to scowl at her really quite menacingly. Now I absolutely love to see kids being taken to concerts but maybe not so good an idea if you child is suffering from a plaguing cough that was sent up from the very depths of Hades itself. Thankfully one of the adults present did the decent thing and whisked the poor girl out for the rest of the concert. The Schubert Sonata is just so hushed at times that it really was the only appropriate course of action. Ironically the coughing throughout the hall subsided during the much more vigorous and strident second half to the concert!

Well, I had waited for quite some time to see Ms Buniatishvili in concert. One thing for sure is that I won’t be waiting so long to see her again as there are several opportunities to see her later in this year and the next.  Do not hesitate if you get the chance!

Great write up - wish I had been there!
For me, the highlight of the programme would have been the Schubert D960 sonata - one of the supreme pieces of classical music for me.
... the Liszt pieces, not so much.   Although I am sure the Hungarian Rhapsody was a tumultuous way to end the concert!

I'd be interested in any comments on the differences between her live D.960 last night and her recording.