The Alonso-Drummond Duo in Review

Evan Drummond, guitar
Orlay Alonso, piano
Sponsored by The Cuban Cultural Center of NY
Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall
November 14, 2012

 

Evan Drummond and Orlay Alonso are a truly remarkable duo, as they are always committed to sharing every note with one another and—most importantly— the audience at hand. For them, it is never about showing off what they can do technically, but rather about bringing the listener into the meaning of the music. They are real virtuosos of their respective instruments, but I don’t want to draw any more attention to their technique; I’d rather discuss their one-of-a-kind chemistry. After all, there are thousands of ensembles who can play extremely well but don’t know how to blend as an organic unit.

The music of Leo Brouwer is an example of music that is not extremely well-known, but when this duo plays it with their trademark passion, the audience seems to feel that they know it like the back of their hands. Brouwer’s music is—simply put—marvelous. Always catch it whenever it is programmed because you’ll walk away rejuvenated and enlightened—especially when the Alonso-Drummond group plays it.

A key component to this duo’s chemistry is their individual backgrounds and how these accomplished musicians joined forces. Alonso traveled  from his native Cuba to New York’s LaGuardia School for the Performing Arts, where he was awarded a scholarship to study at the Manhattan School Pre-College, and later Mannes and Yale. Alonso met Drummond at Yale, and upon their graduation, they began a series of concerts presenting programs of re-imagined interpretations of some of the most cherished repertoire of Spain and Cuba.

They are now also presenting their own arrangements of well-known composers in a quasi-ballet suite format. Drummond has signed with Dunvagen Music Publications for an arrangement of a Phillip Glass composition, and I believe the duo has a future not only because of their communicative gifts, but also because they will build a whole new repertoire for this unusual but aesthetically pleasing pair of instruments.

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by Anthony Aibel  for New York Concert Review; New York, NY

The Schulman-Zito Duo in Review

The Schulman-Zito Duo
Louise Schulman, viola; Bill Zito, guitar
An Italian in Vienna- Duos by Mauro Giuliani
WMP Concert Hall, New York, New York
August 21, 2012

Violist Louise Schulman and Guitarist Bill Zito, both critically acclaimed musicians as soloists, joined forces in 2001. The Schulman-Zito duo has taken advantage of the unique timbres of their respective instruments to produce a very rich and singing combined sound. They have made the duos of the Italian composer Mauro Giuliani a particular specialty of their collaboration, having recorded four duos on their Compact Disc “An Italian in Vienna- Duos by Mauro Giuliani” (Sono Luminus DSL-92138 –http://www.naxos.com/catalogue/item.asp?item_code=DSL-92138).

Mauro Giuliani (1781-1829) was considered one of the leading guitar virtuosi of his time. Giuliani counted among his friends and colleagues Beethoven (who called him “the divine Giuliani”) and Rossini. Composer of over 150 guitar works that now are considered the core of the 19th century guitar repertoire, he also wrote three guitar concerti and numerous duos for Guitar-Violin and Guitar-Flute. Naturally, the viola was used in place of the violin for this program.

The WMP Concert Hall was the perfect venue for this music. The intimate setting had the feel and look of the 19th century salon, complete with writing desk adorned with a framed portrait on the stage. One could easily imagine being transported back in time hearing Giuliani himself playing his own works for his admirers.

From the opening notes of the Serenade in G major, Opus 127, it was immediately apparent that Ms. Schulman and Mr. Zito have a special rapport, something that is missing from many duos. Played with great sensitivity and delicate balance, the interplay of the melodic material was projected seamlessly and with sparkling clarity. It takes great ability to make what is deceptively complex sound effortless and organic- Ms. Schulman and Mr. Zito have this in abundance. Indeed, this was a recurring theme throughout the entire performance. A humorous moment took place at the end of the third movement, when the audience began to applaud as if the work had been completed. After the applause had faded, Ms. Schulman smiled and said to the audience, “I always think that is the end too!” The duo then played the final movement and finished in fine style.

The Grand Duo Concertante in A major, Opus 85, is another example of Giuliani’s seemingly endless melodic inventiveness. Using a favorite harmonic modulation of his countryman Rossini, this “Viennese” work has an undeniably Italian flavor. Ms. Schulman continued her display of mastery of the material in an unpretentious and restrained fashion. The lovely opening of the second movement, which in the hands of a lesser player could have sounded hackneyed, was played by Mr. Zito with breathtaking beauty. It did seem that some phrases were hurried and cut a bit short (especially in the first movement), but each instance took place at a page turn, a minor quibble that could be easily remedied.

The second half began with the Grand Overture for Solo Guitar, Opus 61. This work gives the modern listener an idea of Giuliani’s brilliance as a performer. Filled with virtuosic flair, this work requires a player with tremendous technique to navigate its many challenges. Mr. Zito gave a confident and inspired performance. It was striking how easy he made it all seem. Ending the concert with the Grande Serenade in D major, Opus 82, afforded yet another opportunity for this duo to demonstrate their excellence. The appreciative audience gave the performers extended and well-deserved applause at the performance’s end.

The Schulman-Zito duo has done honor to Mauro Giuliani by their first-rate performances. I hope they continue to explore the repertoire and delight audiences with their musical gifts.

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by Jeffrey Williams  for New York Concert Review; New York, NY

Peter Fletcher, guitar

Peter Fletcher, guitar
Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall, New York, NY
March 27, 2010

Peter Fletcher’s loyal followers at Weill Recital Hall were treated to a program of classical guitar music that ran the gamut from Paduana, by Baroque lute music pioneer Esaias Reusner, to the haunting and ethereal Prelude and Ritual from David Leisner’s Four Pieces. Fletcher began the evening with three crowd-pleasing transcriptions: Handel’s Sarabande and Variations, Bach’s Prelude No.1 from Book 1 of The Well Tempered Clavier, and Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring (a Foster transcription).

The highlight of the evening was Fletcher’s clever transcription of Erik Satie’s Sports and Divertissements. This set of fifteen of the twenty ephemeral, witty pieces was originally conceived as a multimedia project for music, with sketches by Charles Martin—of which some illustrations were printed in the program—and narration by Daniel Brondel, who gave an equally witty demonstration of each of Satie’s poetic commentaries. Colin-Maillard (or Blindman’s Bluff) particularly demonstrated the wide range of his personal vocabulary, which is unique in his transcriptions, and the same can be said of his transcriptions of Issac Albeniz’s Sevilla and Leopold Weiss’ Passacaglia.

In the program notes, Fletcher attributes the cumbersome quality of Bach’s Lute Suite in E minor to his lack of lute skills and reminds the audience that the score does not specify lute as the instrument for which it is written. Though Fletcher’s overall interpretation of the suite was very moving, he illustrated the aforementioned technical awkwardness by rushing through the end of the Gigue. He also performed, with some difficulty, his own transcription of Ravel’s Empress of the Pagodas from the Mother Goose Suite, though his arrangement of this and the Pavane of the Sleeping Beauty were strikingly clever. He did, however, give absolutely seamless performances of Villa-Lobos’ Gavotta-Choro and Carlo Domeniconi’s koyunbaba, (Turkish for “sheep-father”), which was particularly impressive due to the re-tuning of his guitar.

Throughout the program, Fletcher created an air of comfort in his musical presentation: his choice to address the audience in between movements, and his relaxed attire transformed the regal Weill Hall into his own living room, where the audience was made to feel very welcome.

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by Anthony Aibel  for New York Concert Review; New York, NY

Carlos Perez, guitar

Carlos Perez, guitar
Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall, New York, NY
March 18, 2010

Guitarist Carlos Perez, a native of Chile, presented a potpourri of composers from Bach to Rodrigo on his recital. He performed entirely from memory. Rodrigo’s Elogio de la Guitarra is wonderfully inventive, and Perez played it with much flavor and zest¸ and with spontaneity of tempo and spirit. Another highlight of the program was the inventive, captivating and technically demanding Tarentella by David Pavlovits. Pavlovitz is a young Hungarian composer and guitarist (one can tell he plays guitar because his work is so idiomatic for the instrument) whose work is inspired by the folklore of South-Eastern Europe. Perez played the piece with both depth of character and technical accomplishment.

In Carulli’s Deux Andantes (No. 1 and 3), Op. 320, Perez showed a wide variety of color, and the pieces were exquisitely rendered. Bach’s Cello Suite No. 4 in E-flat is not really suited to guitar, as one misses the sustained sound of the cello and its dynamic range. Antonio Lauro’s Three Pieces could have used more contrast as well, although the Romanza was perfect in its detail. Four Chilean Folk Songs could not have been played with a more natural affinity for the style. Earlier in the program, I occasionally wished for more definition in the phrasing, but here, Perez brought a lovely shape to all of them, especially to Parabienes—Ya se casaron los novios, where a captivating, gradual decrescendo had me searching for the fading sonorities at the edge of my seat.

Perez has issued ten CDs, two DVDs, and recorded at several European radios, and he has given recitals in over thirty countries in North, Central, and South America as well as Europe. He has played at the Berlin Philarmonie, the Auditorio Nacional in Spain, and England’s Royal Festival Hall among others. We look forward to his next recital here in New York. No doubt, he has much to offer the guitar community.

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by Anthony Aibel  for New York Concert Review; New York, NY