Garrick Ohlsson is a big bear of a man who settles at the keyboard slowly and then unfolds a wide dynamic range - from demonic power to wistful delicacy - always driving the musical structure forward with sureness and clarity, no matter how much the intense and wild invention of the composer invites dissolution.
His recital program at Angel Place Recital Hall, Sydney, gave us two contrasting cycles, one Spanish, one Russian, taking its theme from the relationship of art and music.
Goyescas, by Granados is a cascade of notes, a veritable fountain of invention, its surging themes unmistakably Iberian, both playful and erotic. Liszt is certainly being channelled – but the strong light and dusky perfume of Spain is on display. Inspired by the lighter side of Goya’s artwork, the work is a tour de force, luxuriating in its glistening timbres of desire.
Ohlsson had its full measure. The dexterity of the interplay of themes in the final segment of the cycle was alternatively rapturous and passionate, each note clearly registering, while the well-known Maiden and the Nightingale movement had firm control within tenderness reminding us of the clarity with which the great Alicia del la Rocha used to play this ravishing piece. As Granados said, he sought to capture ‘the whitish pink of the cheeks, contrasted with the blend of black velvet” and bohemian sense of rapture.
The second half of the recital plunged into the well-known Pictures at an Exhibition by Modest Mussorgsky, in its original incarnation. The power of this piece is even more scarifying when played on a grand piano.
Ohlsson brought dark humour to many of its movement, while the requisite power was unleashed for the last Great Gate of Kiev movement, which felt very Russian in its rising intensity and tolling bells. The panache and deep imagination of the composer was mirrored in the performance from the mystery of the catacombs, to the ponderous and startling tread of the oxen and the demonic Baba Yaga, the hut on hen’s legs.
This bold work has all the richness of a Russian icon – but is very cleverly constructed.
Ohlsson clearly brought out the nuanced writing and variations that occur with each return of the Promenade theme. Structural clarity was married to shattering power that still indicated there was power in reserve, such was the coiled intensity of his performance.
After this heroic performance, he thanked his audience with a wry smile and shy diffidence. His encores gave us an additional Goyescas – El Pelele which worked it way into the first tableau of Granados’ short opera premiered at the Metropolitan Opera in 1916 - as well as two of Chopin’s waltzes, reminding us that Ohlson won the Chopin International Piano Competition in 1970. Maestro Ashkenazy, and outstanding pianist in his own right, was in the audience to cheer on all these wonderful performances.
Sydney Symphony Orchestra – International Pianists in Recital – Angel Place Recital Hall – Sydney – February 15, 2016
Garrick Ohlsson is a big bear of a man who settles at the keyboard slowly and then unfolds a wide dynamic range - from demonic power to wistful delicacy - always driving the musical structure forward with sureness and clarity, no matter how much the intense and wild invention of the composer invites dissolution.
His recital program at Angel Place Recital Hall, Sydney, gave us two contrasting cycles, one Spanish, one Russian, taking its theme from the relationship of art and music.
Goyescas, by Granados is a cascade of notes, a veritable fountain of invention, its surging themes unmistakably Iberian, both playful and erotic. Liszt is certainly being channelled – but the strong light and dusky perfume of Spain is on display. Inspired by the lighter side of Goya’s artwork, the work is a tour de force, luxuriating in its glistening timbres of desire.
Ohlsson had its full measure. The dexterity of the interplay of themes in the final segment of the cycle was alternatively rapturous and passionate, each note clearly registering, while the well-known Maiden and the Nightingale movement had firm control within tenderness reminding us of the clarity with which the great Alicia del la Rocha used to play this ravishing piece. As Granados said, he sought to capture ‘the whitish pink of the cheeks, contrasted with the blend of black velvet” and bohemian sense of rapture.
The second half of the recital plunged into the well-known Pictures at an Exhibition by Modest Mussorgsky, in its original incarnation. The power of this piece is even more scarifying when played on a grand piano.
Ohlsson brought dark humour to many of its movement, while the requisite power was unleashed for the last Great Gate of Kiev movement, which felt very Russian in its rising intensity and tolling bells. The panache and deep imagination of the composer was mirrored in the performance from the mystery of the catacombs, to the ponderous and startling tread of the oxen and the demonic Baba Yaga, the hut on hen’s legs.
This bold work has all the richness of a Russian icon – but is very cleverly constructed.
Ohlsson clearly brought out the nuanced writing and variations that occur with each return of the Promenade theme. Structural clarity was married to shattering power that still indicated there was power in reserve, such was the coiled intensity of his performance.
After this heroic performance, he thanked his audience with a wry smile and shy diffidence. His encores gave us an additional Goyescas – El Pelele which worked it way into the first tableau of Granados’ short opera premiered at the Metropolitan Opera in 1916 - as well as two of Chopin’s waltzes, reminding us that Ohlson won the Chopin International Piano Competition in 1970. Maestro Ashkenazy, and outstanding pianist in his own right, was in the audience to cheer on all these wonderful performances.
Sydney Symphony Orchestra – International Pianists in Recital – Angel Place Recital Hall – Sydney – February 15, 2016
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