The Center for Musical Excellence Presents Simon Hwang

Simon Hwang, Piano

Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall, New York, NY

April 6, 2017

A very auspicious recital debut was performed last Thursday by Simon Sunghoon Hwang at the Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall. It is difficult to believe that this was actually his New York debut, as this pianist has already accumulated such a long list of credentials. There was no question of his being more than ready for the occasion.

Mr. Hwang’s biography lists forty prizes in piano competitions, in addition to special interpretive awards. As Min Kwon (Director of the Center for Musical Excellence) quipped during her introductory remarks, “I didn’t know there even were that many competitions.” As an extremely active professor and pianist herself, of course Ms. Kwon was joking, but what is clear is the formidable work that Mr. Hwang has done. To compete in such pianistic trials, one needs considerable polish, a grasp of repertoire from various style periods, and perhaps most of all, nerves of steel – Mr. Hwang appears to possess all of these, plus a burning commitment to his profession. One might not have agreed with each interpretive decision in his highly varied program, but that’s the nature of the art, and there was little question of the engagement and intent behind each work.

His first half opened with Alborada en Aurinx by Xavier Montsalvatge (1912-2002), moving on to Haydn’s great Sonata in E-flat Hob. XVI:52, and concluding with the monumental Chaconne in D minor, arranged by Ferrucio Busoni from Bach’s Violin Partita No. 2 BWV 1004. A second half of Scriabin Deux Poèmes Op. 32, Liszt Ballade No. 2 in B minor, and Ravel’s La Valse made up a program of considerable technical, stylistic and coloristic demands.

The opening Montsalvatge was a joy to hear. First of all, it is seldom played, so it was a fresh experience – I’ve actually never heard it in recital until this week, only on recording. Secondly, having heard it only in recordings in which the challenging, dissonant nature of it rendered it rather inaccessible, I was pleasantly surprised to hear it start with such sensitivity of phrasing and gentle colors, sensuous evocations of dawn. It built to quite a fever pitch in what was an altogether winning opening.

Haydn, next, was a good change of style, though I had trouble agreeing with Mr. Hwang’s conception. I always think of this Sonata as one of the more Beethovenian of the Haydn Sonatas, with its declamatory, almost gruff opening setting off an ensuing drama of contrasts. It is the last of Haydn’s Sonatas, perhaps the most substantial, yet in Mr. Hwang’s reading it seemed light almost to the point of being facile, a quality underscored by some superfluous hand gestures. Again, such differences of opinion often arise, and one has to be glad for them. Also, if all seemed to veer towards the Mozartean side of the classical spectrum, one wonders whether perhaps this interpretation was colored by Mr. Hwang’s decade-plus of work in a piano duet ensemble called Duo Arte Mozart (with pianist Alexey Lebedev). At any rate, his suave approach was most effective in the last movement, where some witty turns of phrase and harmony were highlighted.

The Bach-Busoni Chaconne was a rousing closer before intermission, and Mr. Hwang played it with tremendous intensity. Some pianists tend to favor more unity of tempo in this work than he does, but again there are umpteen different plausible interpretations possible here. Minor differences of opinion aside, it was a dramatic and virtuosic performance. He brought out interesting inner voices and lines and created interesting washes of sound with the pedal, all which marked his as an individual interpretation. Also – and it probably goes without saying, based on his competition track record – he missed nary a note!

The second half of the program exploited Mr. Hwang’s gifts for color in the Scriabin Op. 32, and the first Poème was especially sensitively played. The craggy second Poème was bursting with passion, and Mr. Hwang was persuasive and committed in each musical impulse.

Liszt’s Ballade in B minor, up next, was well-played with stormy bravura. It served as an effective transition to Ravel’s La Valse, the finale of the program, which again built to quite a furor. La Valse is an immensely difficult piece to play, as one strives for effects best conveyed (obviously) by a full orchestra to send the waltz airborne – but by the end Mr. Hwang triumphed. His pacing proved ultimately masterful. Whatever one might have missed in orchestral color initially was somehow made up for in the building swirl of momentum and thunderous climaxes.

An enthusiastic ovation resulted in an encore – Earl Wild’s Etude on “Embraceable You.” This piece is now nearly ubiquitous in recitals, but justifiably so, as it does make a sweetly sentimental encore. It was lovingly played here, actually one of the highlights of the evening.

Congratulations are in order for what was, all in all, a very successful debut. There is little question as to Mr. Hwang being safely ensconced in his pianistic role.

Distinguished Concerts International New York (DCINY) presents An Evening with Troy Colt Bands

The Troy High School Concert Band, Symphonic Band, Jazz Ensemble, Flute Choir, Saxophone Choir

Brian P. Nutting, Director; Jeff Krum, Assistant Director

Guests: Marcus Elliot, Jazz Artist-in-Residence; Amanda Sabelhaus, Piano; Albert Gonzales, “The Royal Piper,” Bagpipes; Members of the Eisenhower Dance Ensemble: Brooke Mainland, Rachel Pawson, Dan Wentowrth, Katie Wiley

Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center, New York, NY

March 24, 2017

I must confess that the prospect of an entire evening of high school band music had me less than optimistic. However, I happily report that the enthusiasm, artistry, leadership, and overall excellence of these players from Troy, Michigan convinced me of the error of my prejudice. Clearly, the community and the school administration support music, a fact that was made explicit in engaging patter by their excellent conductor, Brian P. Nutting. This message is more vital than ever in the political climate in which we find ourselves.

The Troy Jazz Ensemble kicked off this full evening with a bang in an arrangement of Billy Joel’s New York State of Mind. If the percussion was a bit too loud, blame it on youthful enthusiasm. The arrangement of the 1930 standard Body and Soul was superb, with the added treat of Marcus Elliot’s authentically bluesy tenor saxophone solo. The two vocal soloists in Gershwin’s 1937 tune Let’s Call the Whole Thing Off (Lindsay Nichols and Kulin Oak) were absolutely delightful, singing with a wit beyond their years. Jeff Bunnell’s Ten Brothers was great as well; you could see that all the players were truly enjoying themselves.

The flute choir followed, with a clever medley of melodies from Viennese waltzes by Emil Waldteufel, given the punning name of Forest Devil Waltzes.

Then the Troy Concert Band took the stage with Sedona by Steven Reineke, a boilerplate piece, but one that showed the excellence of the winds to great advantage. Jay Dawson’s arrangement of Amazing Grace was offered as a solace to those affected by 9/11 (some of the band had sight-seen the memorial earlier), with added authenticity provided by former NYPD officer Albert Gonzales on the traditional bagpipes. Warren Barker’s New York 1927 and Randall Standridge’s Ruckus provided a stirring close to the group, with the latter sounding more like “raucous” (but intended that way). Sometimes the full bands made too much sound for the small confines of Alice Tully Hall.

These programs are always generous, one might uncharitably complain “too” generous, and they involve a lot of what I call “furniture moving” as the different formations set up. I wish DCINY could figure out a way to streamline this even more, though their attention to detail and logistics is impressive.

The saxophone choir played a fascinating work by one of their own students, senior Tyler Bouque. He created a sort of depiction of sights possible to see in New York City by traveling on the “blue” line as he calls it. In his 9/11 section (fourth of five) he achieved a sort of Coplandesque grandeur, which I mean as a very high compliment. I do hope he didn’t have to pay royalties to John Kander for the quote from New York, New York in the finale. Remarkable work, I hope he continues to love music and create it.

After intermission, the Troy Symphonic Band had their turn, with a good performance of Alfred Reed’s Symphony No. 3 (first movement), whose opening portentous tympani strokes seem to reference Brahms’ First Symphony, but without the rigor. Then an extraordinary student, Karthik Ganapathy, played the marimba by himself in a beautiful Prelude by Ney Rosauro. The piece quotes various stock flamenco materials (one that is heard in Albeniz’ Asturias). He drew every possible color from the instrument, with great flair and ease. Leonard Bernstein’s third dance episode from On the Town was given a brash, stylish, exciting reading; it was a pleasure to hear really “great” music. The evening concluded with a multi-media spectacular: four members of the Eisenhower Dance Ensemble performed to the band’s rendition of Danzón No. 2 by Arturo Marquez, with its Cuban/Mexican/Puerto Rican fusion. The sole male dancer was kept busy partnering the three women, and they were all excellent. The proud parents and friends in the audience leapt to their feet for a well-deserved ovation.

Kara Huber, Piano

Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall, New York, NY

March 16, 2017

An absolutely dazzling New York solo debut was given this week by American pianist Kara Huber. If that is “cutting to the chase” rather quickly, compared to the usual scene-setting introduction, I figured I’d better commit it to paper quickly before I might start to believe that the whole evening was a mirage. It was not, of course, a mirage – but a very rare achievement, one that those without the regular habit of attending concerts will have sadly missed. There are many fine players out there today, without question, but to hear such a fiendishly difficult program presented with such seemingly effortless polish, maturity, insight, grace, and stamina to burn leaves one simply dumbfounded – and yes, this is coming from a reviewer who has played (and taught) a sufficient amount of the same repertoire to develop some strong opinions.

One noticed first the interesting program itself, beautifully conceived to open with four of the Etudes by David Rakowski (b. 1958), a major work of Joan Tower (b. 1938), three confections of Earl Wild (from Seven Virtuoso Etudes on Gershwin Songs), and, after intermission, the complete Op. 32 (Thirteen Preludes) of Sergei Rachmaninoff. The general trajectory led the listener in reverse chronology from the bright and brash hues of the witty Rakowski into the sometimes dark ruminations of Rachmaninoff’s 1910 opus, with a change of wardrobe to match. Suffice it to say that it worked.

Incidentally, Ms. Huber has a captivating stage presence, but as this reviewer is indifferent as to whether pianists look like trolls, goblins, or goddesses, that aspect is a plus more for the visually oriented mobs.

One noticed next that there was a substantial set of credentials in Ms. Huber’s biographical notes (for more, see www.karahuber.com) – but again, many years of reading these have made it all fade into so much verbiage. She has done quite a lot, but undoubtedly there is much more to come.

One noticed next: the playing! Opening with Rakowski’s Etude #52, Moody’s Blues (2003), Ms. Huber made short work of this perpetual motion chordal toccata, exhibiting fearless steadiness, riveting machine wrists, and charisma to boot. I am actually not a huge fan of this “Rock and Roll Etude on repeated chords” but it was such an invigorating opening in qualified hands that it won one over. Following (with an unannounced switching of order) came the Etude #25, Fists of Fury (1999). Again, Ms. Huber rode it as a vehicle for her prodigious pianistic skills. The next, Etude #30 A Gliss is Just a Gliss (2000), was a sheer delight in playful glissando acrobatics, and the conclusion, Etude #68 Absofunkinlutely (2005) captured the audience with its infectious and energetic “funk” rhythms. Mr. Rakowski is to be treasured for livening up the piano repertoire with close to 100 of these often humorous and appealing etudes on different facets of pianism (pianists who did not know that: get to work!). Ms. Huber, though, is to be commended for tackling such formidable challenges with ease and panache. One could only imagine the joy for Mr. Rakowski, who was present for a bow.

Continuing in the contemporary music vein, Ms. Huber performed the work entitled No Longer Very Clear by Joan Tower, one of the pillars in the world of American composers today. Each of the four movements relates to a line from the John Ashbery poem, “No Longer Very Clear,” including Holding a Daisy (1996), Or Like a … an Engine (1994), Vast Antique Cubes (2000), and Throbbing Still (2000). It is a challenging and evocative work, thorny, and of great scope (and lasting close to 18 minutes in duration), and Ms. Huber was as persuasive in interpreting it as one could hope for from any pianist. The composer, who was present for a bow, appeared thrilled, and one can easily see why. One expects young composers to be lining up in hopes that Ms. Huber will champion their works.

Three of Earl Wild’s Seven Virtuoso Etudes on Gershwin Songs (1989) capped off the first half with more immediately appealing “hummable” audience pleasers. We heard The Man I Love, Embraceable You, and I Got Rhythm, much-appreciated gems which showed a touch of Ms. Huber’s flair for good old-fashioned melody with frothy filigree.

One needed to recover from exhaustion just thinking about the energy involved in such a demanding first half, but the second half featured none other than the complete 13 Preludes Op. 32 (1910) by Sergei Rachmaninoff. The Preludes in general may not be as overtly rigorous as some of the larger works or even the Etudes-Tableaux, but – make no mistake – these are fiercely demanding works, obviously more so when played as a set. They were, in a word, flawless. Let’s repeat that: flawless! Not only could Ms. Huber’s performances go straight to disc with minimal edits, but they were interpreted beautifully lucidly, with no wallowing or self-indulgence. Each possessed a sense of shape and direction in every phrase, a keen awareness of the overall composition, and ample technique for each challenge. Moving from delicacy to power, from extroverted drama to quiet solemnity, the miracle of Rachmaninoff’s composition shone through, a testament to this superb performer. A highlight was the E minor Prelude (No. 4), which emerged as no “mere” Prelude, but epic in scope.

Consistent with the success of the evening were the very helpful program notes by John Bowen. On a critical note, there probably ought to have been attribution for twelve of the Preludes’ thirteen thumbnail descriptions, which one realized upon reading the twelfth, an especially beautiful one that cited “harp-like figurations running like water down the window-panes of a Russian dacha.” Those words originated in David Fanning’s excellent notes for a Steven Osborne Hyperion CD. Surely there was no intent on Mr. Bowen’s part to claim credit (as there were quotation marks for each characterization), yet still it seems that Mr. Fanning deserved a nod. Aside from that omission, kudos for such an effort to render the music accessible.

One had the sense that Ms. Huber could have played several more recitals after her standing ovation, but she wisely let Rachmaninoff have the last word. What a smashing debut!