Cheng 2 Duo in Review

Cheng 2 Duo in Review
Bryan Cheng, cello
Silvie Cheng, piano
Weill Recital Hall, New York, NY
October 16, 2011
Cheng 2 Duo

Cheng 2 Duo

 

The New York debut recital of Bryan and Silvie Cheng was infused with a spirit of thoughtfulness and generosity. The obvious affection between the two siblings extends beyond the familial sphere into the audience, and most importantly, into the music itself.  The differences between brother and sister, both as players and as individuals, were apparent within minutes of the first piece.  The thirteen year old cellist, Bryan Cheng, is gifted with abundant facility, innate musicality, and a sense of joy.  Although his talent needs shaping, he benefits from an experienced and exquisite partner in his sister Silvie.

The program alternated between showcases of virtuosity for the cellist, and solid, refined renditions of two sonatas from the solo piano repertory.  Their first offering, the Schubert Arpeggione Sonata, was delivered with aplomb, and a nice sense of phrasing and structure.  Here, as in later works on the program, Mr. Cheng’s left hand work was admirable, but not completely secure.  I hesitate to dwell on this because he is already playing on such a high level.  However, in a sonata such as this, passagework is so exposed, and the challenge is to make it sound pristine and effortless.  He will get there soon, but he is not quite there yet.

Throughout both the Haydn Sonata in E flat major and the Schumann Second Sonata, Ms. Cheng gave thoroughly idiomatic and polished performances.  To appreciate Haydn, one must enter into a private, eccentric world of musical expression.  The pianist brought us there with her subtle use of rubato and finely varied gradations of touch and dynamic.  In the Schumann, her playing of the jewel like second movement was especially poetic, and her pedaling at the close of the fourth movement was purely magical.  I have never heard the piano in this hall sound as round and ample.

It was a treat to hear the Paganini Variations on a Theme of Rossini, a work originally written for the violin, but adapted for cello, and played entirely on the A string.  With fleet fingers, Mr. Cheng successfully negotiated most, if not all of the Alpine passages of this very difficult work. The afternoon’s only contemporary composition was the single movement, “Bringing the Tiger Down from the Mountain II” by the Chinese-Canadian composer Alexina Louie.  In a series of highly contrasting musical gestures, Ms.  Louie explores the opposing forces of yin and yang.  After the penultimate measures dwindle into barely audible rustlings in both cello and piano, there is a terrific surprise ending, which I will not divulge here.  Let’s just say the tiger has the last word.

The Cheng 2 Duo’s grand finale was the Tchaikovsky Rococo Variations, a brave undertaking for any cellist.  I enjoyed hearing Mr. Cheng tackle the fierce technical challenges.  He has no fear, and when he hits the mark, it can be stunning.  This young musician has all the makings of a fine concert artist.  If he pays very close attention to how his sister makes music, he could be a great one.

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by David La Marche  for New York Concert Review; New York, NY

Edith Eisler in Memoriam

Edith Eisler in Memoriam
August 4, 2011

 
 
 

 The violinist Edith Eisler, who was a beloved teacher and coach for over 50 years, and a frequent contributor to New York Concert Review, died in her Manhattan home on July 18, at the age of 86.  Her Upper West Side apartment was a haven for violinists and chamber music players of all ages, beneficiaries of her lifelong immersion in music, and her disciplined yet humane approach to teaching.  In addition to her primary vocation,  she was a gifted writer and a highly valued reviewer on the staffs of several music publications.

I met Edith for the first time in 1995, after she was recommended to me by a mutual friend who was a colleague of hers at the Turtle Bay School.  She agreed to take me on as a violin student on the condition that I  also  make myself available as a pianist for her chamber music studio.  For the next sixteen years, I met with her weekly in my struggle to master the violin, and stayed on after my lesson for countless ad hoc sessions with flutists, cellists and violinists who, like me, were both Edith’s friends and devoted students.  My aptitude on the violin progressed at a glacial pace over those many years, due mostly to my spotty practice regime.  I did learn to play the violin though, and more importantly, I absorbed, through Edith, a tradition of playing music, a way of hearing and feeling music that has made me a better musician.

Edith Eisler

Her teaching was rigorous, methodical, and individualized.  The standard exercise books and student pieces were supplemented with hundreds of  study sheets, written in her own hand, and recycled over decades to adapt to each new technical challenge.  She would absolutely forbid her students to fake anything or to move on to a new piece until they had completely mastered the previous one.  Likewise, her chamber music coaching could turn into month long odysseys into the heart of a Beethoven sonata or a Schubert fantasy.  These composers – Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Brahms – were as close to her as her own family, and their works were sewn into the fabric of her heart and soul.

Music was Edith Eisler’s religion.  Indeed, she observed no holidays, religious or otherwise, offering lessons on Christmas Day or Yom Kippur, oblivious to convention.  She was extremely thin, with the appetite of a sparrow.  In all the years I knew her, the only thing I ever saw her consume was coffee, usually cold.  She often admonished me for patronizing Starbucks, when she had “perfectly good” coffee in the refrigerator.  When Edith wasn’t teaching or coaching, she was listening to music from her vast CD library, on the radio or television, or more likely, at one of New York’s numerous concert halls.  After her long career as a reviewer (she hated the word critic and most practitioners of that profession), she maintained free access to Carnegie Hall and most other venues simply because she was beloved by the people who worked there.  Edith’s concert companion for most of her life was her mother Sophie, and after she died at the age of 101, I became one of many friends to whom she would offer tickets, in exchange for help getting a taxi after the show.

Throughout her life, Edith remained nostalgic about her childhood in Vienna, and spoke with regret about having to flee her country in order to find a better existence here.  Like many displaced people, she worked very hard to make her new home a safe and nurturing place.  I, and many others, mourn Edith’s passing not only because we loved her as a friend and mentor, but because she represented a tradition which is slowly vanishing in this technological age.  That tradition rests on the creation of live music in one’s own home, the enjoyment of sharing this with others, and the gift of knowledge passed on through generations of musicians.

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by David La Marche  for New York Concert Review; New York, NY

New Asia Chamber Music Society in Review

 New Asia Chamber Music Society in Review
Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall
April 19, 2011 
New Asia Chamber Music Society

New Asia Chamber Music Society; Photo Credit: Richard Termine

There is an infusion of fresh blood in the chamber music world, if the recent performance by the New Asia Chamber Music Society is any indication.  This newly formed ensemble, comprised of many young and gifted players, is an impressively organized and professional group.  Their debut at Weill Recital Hall was tight and well rehearsed, which allowed the players to make music with sense of pleasure and spontaneity. 

In the Brahms F minor Quintet, the heart of soul of this particular performance rested squarely with the cellist Nan-Cheng Chen and the violist Wei-Yang Andy Lin.  Mr. Chen is a natural musician, who plays with a beautiful, singing tone and a keen awareness of ensemble.  Mr. Lin, just as integral, but in a quieter way, is an ideal collaborator.  He uses vibrato as a measured, expressive tool, and his pure intonation anchors the group.  Although this quintet didn’t quite master the blend and uniformity of style that more seasoned players achieve, this was still a compelling performance.  The use of nuanced dynamics and articulation, especially in the middle movements, gave texture and life to the music.  Mr. Lin spun a pristine, cantabile melody in the Andante second theme, and the entire ensemble dispatched the Scherzo with breathtaking fire and precision.

Jay Lin’s, “…as time flows and eclipses…” was given a dark hued, richly vibrant reading by the New Asia players.  Mr. Lin has a real gift for layering sound and color to create tension.  Both his piano writing and his shimmering string figures sounded fresh and evocative.

The program finale, Tchaikovsky’s Sextet, op. 70 (Souvenir de Florence) was the least convincing offering on the program.  All the elements that go into a good performance were present.  Each individual made important, musical contributions to the whole, yet there were whole passages in which the players seemed to have conflicting ideas about interpretation.  The Adagio movement especially felt too tightly controlled, so that I missed that floating, Italianate quality.  This is a piece that would benefit from more instinctual impulses.

In general though, this is an ensemble of a very high standard.  I enjoyed their music making and I congratulate them on generating a large and enthusiastic audience.

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by David La Marche  for New York Concert Review; New York, NY

Karen Hakobyan, composer and pianist in Review

 Karen Hakobyan, composer and pianist in Review
Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall
March 1, 2011

Karen Hakobyan

 No one who was in attendance at the recent concert of works by Karen Hakobyan could possibly have felt shortchanged.  The Armenian composer and pianist, a musician of abundant gifts and bountiful ideas, structured an evening that was a survey of both his compositional development and his facility in writing for varied instrument groups.  Mr. Hakobyan’s precocious enthusiasm for making and writing music is infectious.  Indeed, it is a testament to him that all the musicians who performed his works, most of which were fiendishly difficult, seemed relaxed and fully engaged.  My major reservation with this program was with its length.  Simply put, there were just too many pieces to digest.  A little shaping and editing would have shown the composer’s strengths in a better light.

By his own description, Mr. Hakobyan’s earlier works dominated the first half of the program.  Although Elegie for Violin and Piano (1999) is a product of a fourteen year old’s imagination, it still provided some technical challenges for its players.  All the hallmarks of the composer’s voice were already in evidence in the Elegie – virtuosic passagework with fistfuls of notes, and the juxtaposition of different stylistic sensibilities (late Romantic, early to mid – Twentieth century.)  These, and a mania for fugues, were woven, in some form, into the next four works, a Prelude and Fugue for Piano, a stunning Toccata for Solo Flute, and two pieces for string quartet.  The string quartets, in particular, showed a more developed palette of dynamics and layering of voices.

The musical language that was introduced in bits in the beginning of the program was pervasive after the intermission. Of these later pieces, the strongest were the Suite for Solo Violin, the Trio for Flute, Clarinet and Piano, and the brilliant Piano Variations, op. 1.  As is often the case, Mr. Hakobyan’s assets are also his weaknesses. He is never at a loss for ideas, but those ideas would carry more weight if there were less of them.  Having said that, the sheer virtuosity of his more successful ventures was a delight to hear.  All of the performers were of a very high standard, but special kudos must go to the flutist Emi Ferguson and the violinist Guillaume Molko.

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by David La Marche  for New York Concert Review; New York, NY

The Texas Christian Percussion Orchestra in Review

 The Texas Christian Percussion Orchestra 
Merkin Concert Hall, New York, NY
February 23, 2011

The Texas Christian Percussion Orchestra

In a very fine recent concert by the TCU Percussion Orchestra at Merkin Hall, the group was especially notable for two remarkable assets.  The first was a fluidity of talent, allowing several different players to shift from one instrument to another with apparent ease and expertise.  In this era of specialization, it was a pleasant surprise.  The second was a sensitive awareness of balance, something rare in young musicians (or musicians in general, for that matter.)  It was nice to hear finely graded dynamics on instruments like the snare drum and tam-tam, which are so often played without subtlety. 

A variety of mallet instruments dominated the stage space and the compositional texture of the program, especially in its first half.  Raymond Helble’s Prelude and Rondo alla Marcia, an attractive neo-Baroque work, initiated a trio of fairly traditional pieces with reinforced melodies resting on plush harmonies.  Offrendas #3, a sun kissed Brazilian lullaby by Ricardo Souza, followed in smooth succession, beginning placidly, and evolving into something more rhythmically dense, while retaining a calm surface.  The composer Eric Ewazen, present at the performance of the third piece, his three movement Symphony for Percussion, rightly applauded the players enthusiastically for a beautiful rendition.  The symphony, with big tunes and a Hollywood sensibility, was a perfect match for the musicians at their level of artistry and expression. 

The works on the second half of the program were more expansive in both instrumentation and contemporary orchestral techniques.  Dave Hall’s nightmarish Doors, the aural equivalent of a Dali painting, was followed by David Maslanka’s Hohner, a highly sophisticated and atmospheric composition, with an unusual structure.  It began with an exhilarating coup de theatre, a blast of antiphonal tympani, with an aftershock of rattlers from all corners of the stage.  The TCU Orchestra rose to the challenges of both these pieces with fervor and consistency.  For the program’s finale, Dwayne Rice’s I Ching required still greater depth and dexterity, especially from the mallet players.  They employed the same relaxed focus and concentration as they had all evening, a proof of their own maturity as musicians, and a testament to the excellent training they have received from their teacher and conductor, Brian A. West. 

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by David La Marche  for New York Concert Review; New York, NY

Park Avenue Chamber Symphony in Review: Tchaikovsky and Rachmaninoff

Park Avenue Chamber Symphony in Review: Tchaikovsky and Rachmaninoff
David Bernard, conductor
Karine Poghosyan, piano
Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 1
Rachmaninoff Symphony No 2
February 13, 2011

David Bernard conducting the Park Avenue Chamber Symphony; photo credit Stefan Cohen

The generosity of spirit and affection that infuses the work of two of the most beloved Russian composers, Tchaikovsky and Rachmaninoff, must be genuine and heartfelt in a good performance.  By this standard, the Park Avenue Chamber Symphony scored a triumph in their rendering of two of these composers’ most iconic works, in a recent concert at All Saints Church.  The Armenian pianist Karine Poghosyan joined the orchestra for the Tchaikovsky First Piano Concerto in what proved to be a warm and sympathetic collaboration. 

The venue for the concert worked both for and against the artists.  As churches go, All Saints is small and intimate, where a good deal of the audience practically sits right on top of the orchestra.  While this allows for a more visceral experience of the music, the acoustic can be simply overwhelming and indistinct in the loudest and most densely textured orchestration.  And what else could explain the choice of a baby grand piano for the concerto but a simple lack of available floor space?  In spite of these liabilities, there was still much to admire in the performance. 

Ms. Poghosyan is a relaxed and natural musician, very obviously at home in the Tchaikovsky.  Her technique is big and secure, with blazing octaves, clean articulation, and a beautifully weighted touch.  More importantly, her virtuosity was not a shallow display of party tricks, but a tool for musical expression. Although it was a disservice to hear her on such an inferior instrument, her strengths were not diminished.  

David Bernard, the Chamber Symphony’s Music Director, led both pieces from memory, with clarity and a sense of spontaneity, even in such well worn repertoire.  Despite occasional struggles with ensemble and intonation, the orchestra played with a strong sense of style and commitment.  Several soloists offered impressive playing, notably the principal cellist and oboist in the Tchaikovsky, and the clarinet and English horn in the Rachmaninoff.  Special mention must be made of the string ensemble in general, who, under the guidance of Mr. Bernard and their concertmaster, David Edelson, play with the depth and fervor of the old school European orchestras. 

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by David La Marche  for New York Concert Review; New York, NY

Enhake Quartet

Enhake Quartet
Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall, New York, NY
May 3, 2010

An evening of works by five living composers was presented by the Enhake Quartet from Florida State University on May 3rd. The members of this foursome, all impressive soloists and adept chamber musicians, made strong cases for each of the compositions on this program. One of the defining characteristics of the Enhake is rock-solid rhythmic integrity which was evident from the start of “Breakdown Tango” by the composer John Mackey. Propelled by the violinist M. Brent Williams’ driving sixteenth note ostinato, each of the other players added a layer of complexity until the grand climax gives way to a lonely habanera solo on cello. Throughout the tango, clarinetist Wonkak Kim wove his sultry, stylized melodies into the fabric. Much of this piece feels as though it has quotation marks around it, yet in spite of that, it is well crafted and benefited from precise ensemble.

Two movements of Kris Maloy’s “Quartet in Four Actions” entitled “Slink” and “Float” further proved the quartet’s strengths in balance, intonation, and musicality. The simple arc of “Slink”, with its slowly blossoming minor third motive, was beautifully paced and modulated. At the outset of “Float”, cellist Jayoung Kim spun a legato line of great elegance, the initial voice in an expansively lyrical canon. As the music spiraled downward in dynamic and pulse, the players handled their challenges with poise.

Libby Larsen’s “Rodeo Queen of Heaven” proved to be the most harmonically adventurous composition in a decidedly conservative program. It commenced with a burst of activity. As the pianist Eun Hee Park held a tenacious pedal note, her colleagues embarked upon an almost improvisational extended fantasia. Ms. Larsen asks the performers of this piece to extend the boundaries of traditional technique, and Enhake is ideally suited to the task. This was a polished, yet spontaneous performance.

Peter Lieuwen’s “Gulfstream”, which opened the second half, was quite obviously programmatic in its deft evocation of the swirling waters of that grand body of water. Again, Eun Hee Park provided a solid foundation of fluent pianism, at times industrious, and then gently undulating. Along the way, Mr. Kim showed his impressive range in a quasi cadenza-like solo for clarinet. This was not an ambitious work, but well structured and idiomatic in its writing.

For sheer enjoyment, it would be hard to beat Peter Schickele’s “Quartet in A” as a program finale. In four clearly defined movements, the composer employs elements of French salon music, American jazz, and Eastern European folk dance, complete with off-kilter meter changes. Mr. Schickele knows how to feature his musicians, providing them with meaty, virtuosic rifts, and intuitively musical passages which just seem fun to play.

I look forward to hearing Enhake again soon, and by then I hope they will have been able to commission an even greater range of works for their growing repertory. They are excellent artists and technicians who present thoroughly prepared performances.

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by David La Marche  for New York Concert Review; New York, NY

Stanislav Khristenko, Piano

Stanislav Khristenko, piano
October 15, 2009
Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall, New York, NY

Stanislav Khristenko, a Ukrainian pianist and first prize winner of the Virginia Waring international piano competition, made his New York recital debut recently in a thoughtful, focused, and ultimately successful concert at Weill Recital Hall.  The pianist revealed deep reserves of artistry and professionalism as the evening progressed, saving his most incisive and colorful playing for the program-ender, five short pieces by Prokofiev.

There was an unusual sense of risk in the pianist’s choice of the Shostakovich first sonata, op. 12 to begin the program. As Mr. Khristenko was acclimatizing himself to his instrument and the hall during this sonata, he did not make a thoroughly convincing argument for this work’s value.  His talent and technique were in evidence immediately, but he pushed the tempo and over pedaled in scale passages where more clarity would have been appreciated.  While I respect the challenge, this composition would be easier to play and hear in a later spot on the program.

In Schubert’s Sonata, d. 958, the pianist again took time to find the right approach to this work, both technically and interpretively.  The Steinway at Weill hall is weak in the middle register, and I could hear Mr. Khristenko struggling to produce a singing tone in the first movement without forcing the sound.  His voicing was bass heavy initially and his rubato a little stiff until he hit his stride in the final two movements.  Most especially, the tarantella was a delight–alive rhythmically, yet relaxed, sounding simultaneously Schubertian and Italianate.

By the second movement of the Schumann C Major Fantasy, which began the second half, Mr. Khristenko was in full control of all his resources and played with a maturity that belied his young age.  The performance was organic from beginning to end, and one of the best I have heard of this difficult work.  With the briefest of pauses, the pianist then launched headlong into the Prokofiev.

In these five excerpts from ten pieces, op. 12, Mr. Khristenko was completely in his métier.  Each selection sparkled like a gem, honed to perfection.  These would have been impressive performances from any artist, but they were all the more joyful from a pianist at the outset of his career.

Mr. Khristenko has the poise and intellect of a seasoned performer.  Despite the fact that all his programming choices were not ideally suited to his temperament, I applaud his appetite for adventure and discovery.

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by David La Marche  for New York Concert Review; New York, NY