Singapore Symphony Orchestra: Ode To Joy / Review

BEETHOVEN FESTIVAL: ODE TO JOY
Singapore Symphony Orchestra

Soloists & Combined Choruses
LAN SHUI, Conductor
Esplanade Concert Hall
Thursday (26 November 2009)

This review was published in The Straits Times on 28 November 2009.

The Singapore Symphony Orchestra’s Beethoven symphony cycle in celebration of its 30th anniversary came to a shuddering climax with its performance of the Ninth Symphony in D minor, popularly known as the “Choral Symphony”. It was a reading for the open-minded, not for the faint of heart.

But first, the presence of famed German soprano Juliane Banse ensured she got a spot of her own. Beethoven’s concert aria Ah! Perfido was the ideal vehicle for her vocal prowess. Almost operatic in character, it was Beethoven’s prescient musical representation of Kubler-Ross’ five stages of grief, beloved of psychologists and counselors.

A woman decries the infidelity of her man, traversing from denial and anger, bargaining through depression, to final acceptance. Banse (left) projected the highly dramatic music well, with an emotionally charged vibe that gradually worked its way into a warm and lyrical denouement.

Its thirteen minutes whetted appetites for the Ninth Symphony, which clocked in at an alarming 60 minutes. With pared-down forces, extra-fast tempos and a lean sound dictated, a jolt to those who favoured the gravity and grandeur of a Karajan or Furtwangler. The unsettling first movement raced ahead, followed by the rapid fire scherzo-like second, relentless like a juggernaut.

The respite craved for in the slow movement came and went, its heavenly length unimpeded by a natural flow that was pleasing but offered little that was profound. There was simply no time for ruminating or meandering. All this set the stage for a brilliant final movement, which was to be the ultimate triumph of the performance.

The first furtive appearance of the Ode to Joy theme was subtly shaded, and the bass Wilhelm Schwinghammer’s declaration of fraternal solidarity rang out imposing and heroic. The four soloists (which had three Germans, including alto Carolin Masur) were well-matched, each holding their parts well, even if American tenor Thomas Cooley’s solo in the Turkish-segment sounded hectic and rushed.

The 200-strong combined choir, augmented by the Singapore Symphony Children’s Choir, was marvelous throughout. Always sensitive to dynamic changes, it also dotted the i’s and crossed the t’s, as expected from its exacting director Lim Yau. The orchestral and choral fugues were simply thrilling, generating the frisson for a grandstand finish.

Music Director Lan Shui’s view of Beethoven remains controversial and challenging as ever, but was it not Gustav Mahler who once said “tradition is sloth”?

CD Reviews (The Straits Times, November 2009)

GREAT PIANISTS OF THE CENTURY
Brilliant Classics 9228 (5 CDs)
***

This modest box-set attempts to encompass a century’s worth of keyboard greats in just five discs – an impossible task, made worse by not having any sleeve notes of any sort. The earliest of 22 pianists featured is Scotsman Frederic Lamond (1868-1948), a student of Franz Liszt who performs his master’s Liebestraum No.3 and Un sospiro. The latest is Russian Nikolai Lugansky (born 1972), one of four living pianists, who frankly does not belong in such august company yet. In between there are some truly great performances, including Serge Rachmaninov in Schumann’s Carnaval, Dinu Lipatti partnering Herbert von Karajan in Schumann’s Piano Concerto, and Benno Moiseiwitsch’s magisterial take on Liszt’s mighty transcription of Wagner’s Tannhäuser Overture.

There are some oddities; Claudio Arrau barnstorming convincingly in Balakirev’s Islamey (a 1928 recording), Alfred Brendel playing Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsody No.2 (from 1968) and a precocious 16-year-old Martha Argerich’s winning performances of Liszt and Prokofiev at the Busoni International Piano Competition. A mixed bag in reality, but there are more gems than duds.

20th Century Classics

SHOSTAKOVICH
EMI Classics 2376862 (2CDs)
****1/2

If the name of Russsian composer Dmitri Shostakovich (1906-1975) still engenders trepidation in listeners, allow Sarah Chang, Han-Na Chang, Sir Simon Rattle and Mariss Janssons to address that phobia in this super-budget anthology. Despite a penchant for the ironic and morbid, a by-product of the Stalinist years, Shostakovich was a genuine and deeply expressive communicator. His Symphony No.1, a teenage effort, never loses its witty fervour on repeated listenings. Three of his concertos are included; Violin Concerto No.1 and Cello Concerto No.1 share a common dark humour topped with searing virtuosity (from the Korean-American Changs), while the ebullient light-hearted Piano Concerto No.2 (with the late John Ogdon) fizzes like soda pop.

The most serious item here is String Quartet No.8 (from Canada’s St Lawrence Quartet) Shostakovich’s most celebrated piece of chamber music and semi-autobiographical tribute to the victims of oppression including himself. At the opposite pole lie his Jazz Suite No.1 and Tahiti Trot, the latter a most outlandish transcription of Tea For Two. This was his mechanism of keeping sane in a society gone all potty. Shall we dance?

ALONE
QIN LI-WEI, Cello
Cello Classics 1022

*****

The voice of the cello is a most haunting one, a fact not lost to composers from Bach to the present day. This hour-long album is a cross-section of unaccompanied cello music from the second half of the 20th century, beginning with Sonatas by avant-garde composers Hungarian György Ligeti and American George Crumb in their earlier years. Both works were influenced by Kodaly and Bartok, which make them eminently listenable – no hair-pulling scrapes for their own sake. Even Paul Hindemith’s Sonata (Op.25 No.3) sounds aggressively spiky by comparison. The Latvian Peteris Vasks’ Das Buch alternates between violence and contemplation, bringing the human voice into the mix, while Italian Giovanni Solima’s Alone makes for a stunning encore.

Singaporean Ho Chee Kong’s recently premiered Tembusu Evenings is the icing on the cake. It is an evocative 5-movement suite imbued with an Asian aroma, distinctive yet subtle, laden with what the composer describes as “misty memories to last several lifetimes”. Shanghai-born cellist Qin Li-Wei is a poet of the bow par excellence, for whom virtuosity is but a servant to ultimate expression.

This CD may be ordered at: www.celloclassics.com

HAVE INTERNATIONAL PIANO COMPETITIONS LOST THEIR EDGE?

A scene that could have come from the 19th century,

Van Cliburn plays for an adoring audience

at the 1958 Tchaikovsky International Piano Competition.

HAVE INTERNATIONAL PIANO COMPETITIONS LOST THEIR EDGE?

This was an article I was asked to write for the bilingual periodical ZBBZ. The publication is a lifestyle magazine for English-speaking Chinese yuppies, not the obvious audience for such a story. Needless to say, it was never published. Here it is, anyway.

There was a time when winning first prize in an international piano competition meant something – instant fame, concert engagements galore and a lucrative contract with a major recording label.

At the height of the Cold War in 1958, the American Van Cliburn defied the Soviets in Moscow to conquer the First Tchaikovsky International Piano Competition. Posterity was immediately assured. A New York City ticker-tape parade fit for war heroes ensued, and his LP recording of Tchaikovsky’s First Piano Concerto sold over a million copies. Even losers had their day, with the enigmatic Serb Ivo Pogorelich winning sympathy and notoriety after being ejected at the semi-finals of the 1980 Chopin International Piano Competition. How times have changed.

Quick, who were the last six winners of the Leeds International Piano Competition? That question will draw a fit of head-scratching and a blank. The names of Sofya Gulyak (left), Sunwook Kim, Antti Siirala, Alessio Bax, Ilya Itin and Ricardo Castro (Leeds winners going back to 1993) mean little to most. Good pianists as they may be, not one is a household name.

Have piano competitions lost their Midas touch?

There are plausible reasons for this perception, and most are not musical. The Alink-Argerich Foundation (world authority on piano competitions) lists over 300 competitions on its website – from Sydney, Australia to Trömso in the Norwegian Arctic Circle. But are there enough concert stages to present these winners, or record labels to hawk their wares? With “big” competitions losing their lustre in the onslaught of dozens of “small” rivals, prestige has become so passé.

Competitions have also tended to encourage a gladiatorial approach to music-making. Most involve multiple rounds, where years of musical training are reduced to 40 to 50 minutes of make-or-break playing. The brilliant and spectacular are usually favoured over the sensitive and profound. Competitors who make least mistakes or sound most agreeable to a consensus-seeking jury often win. The most personal or individual of interpretations are often rejected. Is there any wonder why so many pianists, whether from China, Russia or USA, begin to sound the same?

The jury at the 2005 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition

sit in judgement on the careers of 35 young pianists.

Another contentious issue involves competition juries. This coterie formed by established pianists, conservatory professors and sometimes organisers of competitions is small and insular, often revolving in a merry-go-round of fixtures. Even more egregious is when students of jurors win prizes whenever they preside. Tacit arrangements arise where collusion ascertains certain outcomes, with similar favours reciprocated at the next competition. Transparency is often mooted but almost never realised.

An international piano competition is now only as great as its sphere of influence. A competition in USA only affects American concert life but rarely across the Atlantic, and vice versa. Many competitions further an organiser’s agenda and serve local commercial interests first, while competitors enjoy trickle-down effects, if any. Winners receive prize money, local fame, a run of concerts mostly in small venues, all lasting two to three years, or until the next competition beckons.

So is there a perfect formula for the perfect piano competition? Sadly no, however several competitions are attempting for uniqueness, setting them apart from all the others.

The Van Cliburn International in Fort Worth, Texas has comprehensive coverage, with every note broadcast “live” via the Internet and archived for a global audience. The London International expressly forbids jurors to enter their students, and the final is a collaboration with the London Philharmonic. The Hong Kong International has an A-list jury led by renowned Russian pianist-conductor Vladimir Ashkenazy, who will conduct the concerto round in its next edition. The competition has its own recording label, a concert circuit around East Asia, and promotes its winner in perpetuity. This competition believes that nurturing a talent is a long-term commitment.

Some perspective may be had in the case of 23-year-old New Zealander John Chen (left), who at 18 won First Prize at the 2004 Sydney International. He has since participated in several competitions without replicating his earlier success, but is grateful for the exposure and opportunities - a 50-concert tour of Australasia, four CD recordings and recognition. He believes that competitions provide a good leg-up but post-competition success comes down to the artist himself, a right attitude and sheer hard work. While working on his doctorate in California, he is pleasantly surprised at the number of engagements that still come his way five years after Sydney.

The more commonly heard story is that of a pianist who reaches his pinnacle at the concours but comes crashing down when cold hard facts of a concert career rear its head – living out of a suitcase, unfamiliar venues, poor instruments and unfavourable reviews. The recent debacle involving Li Yundi, who performed execrably with the Singapore Symphony Orchestra, proves that unless an artist keeps himself focused and in top from, he is only as good as his last concert.

In reality, winning a piano competition is merely a calling card, the rest is up to the artist himself.

SINGAPORE LYRIC OPERA: An Evening of Romantic and Tragic Love / Review

AN EVENING OF

ROMANTIC & TRAGIC LOVE
Singapore Lyric Opera
Esplanade Concert Hall
Saturday (21 November 2009)

This review was published in The Straits Times on 23 November 2009.

The Singapore Lyric Opera’s Evening of Romantic & Tragic Love seemed like a redundant title for a concert. After all, what repertory opera has not featured romantic and tragic love of any kind? At any rate, it was an entertaining two hours fare of arias, duets and bleeding chunks.

Dominating the stage was Korean tenor Simon Kyung Lee (left), one who delights in and probably worships his heroic glory notes. Those peaks in Verdi’s Celeste Aida and Puccini’s Che gelida manina (La Boheme) were well within his booming mechanism, often breathtaking, but the downside was a shortage of subtlety. He all but drowned out his partners in duets and ensemble pieces, as in the Quartet of Rigoletto, so intent in displaying his can belto abilities.

The only exception was in the presence of Chinese baritone Zhang Feng, a more sensitive soul, who matched with decibels of his own. Thus, the Pearl Fisher’s Duet by Bizet came off with semblance of balance and some aplomb. Zhang’s arias in Verdi’s Il Trovatore and the Toreador Song (Carmen) were similarly distinguished.

The evening’s finer moments however went to the UK-based Singaporean soprano Yee Ee-Ping (left), who had the greatest range of expressions, both vocal and facial. Her Si, mi chiamano Mimi (Boheme) radiated with the warm flush of first love, and Micaela’s Air (Bizet’s Carmen) filled with the same innocence that greeted her SLO debut in the same role some 11 years ago. Her totally sympathetic contribution as the ill-fated Nedda in excerpts from Leoncavallo’s I Pagliacci completed a multi-faceted display.

The only Singapore-based singer, mezzo-soprano Anna Koor, was by no means overawed in this company, registering sensitive readings in Gluck, Saint-Saens, and the plum role of Carmen. The Habenera could have oozed more sex appeal, but she and tenor Lee had a good thing going in the final duet before being murdered by a hyper-charged Don Jose.

With due respect to Lim Yan’s superb piano accompaniment, these singers and this music, in particular, cried out for an orchestra’s partnership. Budgetary issues probably put paid to that notion anyway, but the variety and quality offered was enough to send the opera-lover more than half-way satisfied.

Nocturnal Fantasies II: Piano Recital by ALBERT TIU / Review

NOCTURNAL FANTASIES II
ALBERT TIU, Piano
Yong Siew Toh Conservatory Concert Hall
Friday (20 November 2009)

This review was published in The Straits Times on 23 November 2009.

The piano music of Chopin (below) is universally loved, whilst that of Russian composer Alexander Scriabin (1872-1915) trails behind considerably, appreciated mostly by pianophiles, acolytes and mystics. Conservatory professor Albert Tiu’s coup in programming juxtaposed works of both pianist-composers, side by side and like for like, for comparison and contrast.

With tongue firmly in cheek, Chopin’s skittish Butterfly Étude (Op.25 No.9) prefaced Scriabin’s Mosquito Étude (Op.42 No.3), so named for its pesky triplet trills on the right hand. Never had comparative entomology and musicology so fortuitous a field day, boosted by Tiu’s rock secure technique and imaginative sense of shading.

Two Waltzes followed, both in the key of A flat major, Chopin’s exuberance balanced by Scriabin’s bittersweet musings. The Mazurkas, from different periods of the composers’ lives, struck a common vein of Slavic melancholy. Chopin’s Polonaise-Fantasie (Op.61) and Scriabin’s Sonata-Fantasie (Op.19) were united by a declamatory opening gesture, one falling while the other rising.

Never a hint of academism, this was gorgeously sensuous music performing with obvious passion and conviction. The smouldering Andante of the Scriabin (left) sonata, with its multiple interweaving lines, issued forth whispers of hidden voices. Innuendo turned into full-blown consummation with the ensuing Presto and its carnal outbursts.

The second half followed along this path of pairs, with rapidly flowing Préludes, the bel canto seamlessness of Nocturnes (including Scriabin’s gem for the left hand alone) and the seemingly improvisatory manner of Impromptus.

The most monumental pieces were left for last. The march-like decorum of Chopin’s Fantasy in F minor (Op.49) and its rhapsodic development were the perfect foil for Scriabin’s Fantasy in B minor (Op.28), surging with brooding and seething disquiet. In their soft centers lay a wellspring of melody, which Tiu tapped like a prospector of liquid gold.

His encores included a morsel of Scriabin, of course, and the ultimate of graceful encores, Godowsky’s delectable transcription of Saint-Saens’ The Swan. The latter evoked for this listener the cherished memory of Shura Cherkassky (left) in his 1994 Singapore recital. When excellence of execution meets inspiration, the results are rarely forgotten.

15-year-old Korean wins 7th Hamamatsu International Piano Competition

The 7th Hamamatsu International Piano Competition has been won by a 15-year-old Korea pianist, Cho Seong Jin (left). He is the youngest pianist to win 1st prize in this competition, and possibly the youngest in all international non-age-grouped piano competitions. The Hamamatsu competition has had an excellent track record of unearthing hitherto unknown talent. Previous winners of recent editions have included Alexej Gorlatch (2006), Rafal Blechacz & Alexander Kobrin (tied for 2nd, 2003) and Alexander Gavrylyuk (2000).

The final placings as follows:

1st: CHO Seong-Jin (Korea)

2nd: GASANOV Elmar (Russia) + Audience prize

3rd: HUH Jae-Weon (Korea)

4th: DUMONT Francois (France)

5th: KIM Hyung-Jung (Korea)

6th: ANN Soo-Jung (Korea)

Hamamatsu International Piano Competition 2009: Finalists named

The six finalists of the Hamamatsu International Piano Competition 2009 have been named. This edition of Japan's top piano competition has been dominated by Koreans; there are 4 Korean pianists in the finals. Like in this year's edition of the Leeds International Piano Competition, Beethoven's Emperor Concerto is going to be heard three times!

The finalists are as follows:

FRANCOIS DUMONT (France) playing BEETHOVEN No.5

ANN SOO-JUNG (Korea) playing RACHMANINOV No.2

CHO SEONG-JIN (Korea) playing BEETHOVEN No.5

HUH JAE-WEON (Korea) playing RACHMANINOV No.2

ELMAR GASANOV (Russia) playing RACHMANINOV Paganini Rhapsody

KIM HYUN-JUNG (Korea) playing BEETHOVEN No.5

The competition finals on 21 & 22 November may be viewed here:

http://www.piacon.jp/live/en.html

WASSY FANTASIA: Piano Recital by MIYUKI WASHIMIYA / Review

WASSY FANTASIA

MIYUKI WASHIMIYA Piano Recital 

Esplanade Recital Studio 

Tuesday (17 November 2009)

An edited version of this review was published in The Straits Times on 20 November 2009.

Stranger things have happened, but it took a French-trained Japanese pianist to pull off the belated World Premiere of Singaporean composer Tan Chan Boon’s (pictured below) Magnum Opus for the piano, Reminiscence. Originally commissioned for the Young Virtuoso Recital of the 2008 Singapore International Piano Festival, the 24-minute work in four linked movements was deemed unplayable by the pianist and dropped.

Contrapuntally dense and awkward for ten fingers it certainly was, but unplayable? Miyuki Washimiya eloquently brought out the multi-layered textures of the strolling introduction, with its passing resemblance to the African-American spiritual Deep River, and surmounted the three ensuing fugues with great lucidity. Hers was not merely a reading, but a solid interpretation revealing many fine details, sculpted with the pristine care of a lapidary.

Making little concessions for the listener, this was “Charles Ives meets Busoni in Singapore”, a thorny devil of a masterpiece which could easily be hailed as Tan’s Fantasia Contrappuntistica, a major landmark in the Singaporean piano repertory.

The rest of Washimiya’s programme was far more audience-friendly, beginning with Mozart’s popular Sonata in A major (K.331). The opening Theme And Variations could have been inflected with a greater degree of dynamic variety, but the Minuet and familiar Turkish Rondo romped home with aplomb. 

Her Chopin set was nicely shaped, reliable rather than revelatory, but the left hand octaves in the "Heroic" Polonaise (Op.53) were remarkable for sheer stamina and power. The first half closed with two Rachmaninov Préludes; the G minor number (Op.23 No.5) was aristocratic and well-judged – putting Lang Lang’s self-serving performance from 2007 to shame – while its counterpart in C sharp minor (Op.3 No.2) pealed with genuine Slavic clangour. 

Washimiya’s true sympathies lay in Latino music, displaying much flair and sensitivity in three dances – including the indestructible Malaguena - by Cuban Ernesto Lecuona, and her encores of Granados’ Andaluza and Falla’s Ritual Fire Dance well and truly brought down the house.

In between these, Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue rocked with the swagger of a jazzman, even if the excisions she made in the score left out some of the juiciest bits. Given the wide-ranging selections over two hours, there was little to complain but much to celebrate.

This piano recital was sponsored by Kris Tan and Lim Liang Chuan in celebration of their 21st wedding anniversary.

TAN CHAN BOON's Reminiscence

Tan Chan Boon's Reminiscence is perhaps the single most ambitious solo piano work by a Singaporean composer. It was commissioned for the Young Virtuoso Recital at the Singapore International Piano Festival 2008. Completed on 20 March 2008, the pianist who was to give its World Premiere on 5 July 2008 dropped it from the recital programme, citing its complexities and "unpianistic qualities". It was replaced by a much simpler work, Liszt's La Leggierezza.

The work begins with a Reminiscence theme (or "walking theme"), which was the big melody heard in Tan's Cherish (a symphonic poem commissioned for the 2008 Singapore Arts Festival, and premiered by the Singapore Festival Orchestra conducted by Chan Tze Law). Reminiscence was thus the logical sequel to Cherish. There are three fugues which follow; the Reminiscence theme appears at the end of each, and this also closes the work. Quotes from Tan's Fourth Symphony (yet to be premiered) also appear in the score.

Reminiscence was premiered by Japanese pianist Miyuki Washimiya on 17 November 2009. Scans of the score below (in Tan's beautiful handwriting, as he does not use Sibelius) are by permission of the composer.

The opening page of Reminiscence (Hui Yi),

with its "Walking theme",

a melody which resembles Deep River.

The First Fugue is the longest and

most complex of the three fugues,

and was originally a stand-alone solo piece.

The tempo picks up somewhat for the Second Fugue.

The Third Fugue is an inversion

of the Reminiscence or "Walking theme". As with his other compositions,

Tan Chan Boon signs off with his

"Alpine" signature on the final page.

In 18 pages and playing for 24 minutes, is this the greatest piano work composed by a Singaporean?

More CD reviews (The Straits Times, November 2009)

PIANO SONATAS
RAFAL BLECHACZ, Piano
Deutsche Grammophon 477 7453
*****

This is the second CD recording on the “Yellow Label” by young Polish pianist Rafal Blechacz, winner of the 2005 Chopin International Piano Competition. Its three classical sonatas prove that he is more than just a Chopin-player, but a musician of interpretive insight and finesse.

Rarely has Haydn’s Sonata No.52 in E flat major sounded so ahead of its time; its grand majestic opening chords, air of contemplation in the slow movement and hectic finale all look ahead to Beethoven. Conversely, Beethoven’s youthful Sonata in A major (Op.2 No.2) is possessed with a spirit and vivacity that recalls Haydn. There is little to separate late Haydn and early Beethoven, it seems. This superb recital concludes with Mozart’s Sonata in D major (K.311) of 1777, ironically the earliest work of the three, where its symphonic pretensions and digital virtuosity predate both the Haydn and Beethoven. Blechacz is one name truly worth following.

FREDERIC RZEWSKI

The People United Will Never Be Defeated!
RALPH VAN RAAT, Piano
Naxos 8.559360

****1/2

If there were a 20th century reply to Bach’s Goldberg Variations and Beethoven’s Diabelli Variations, that would be this hour-long behemoth; 36 variations by the Polish-American pianist-composer Frederic Rzewski (born 1938) on the Chilean socialist anthem El Pueblo Unido Jamas Sera Vencido! The melody is slightly banal but has a catchy swagger that makes it memorable. Rzewski’s treatment traverses the full range of modern techniques and devices, including the pianist whistling and slamming the lid of the keyboard. Much of this music is very accessible, and does not stray too far away from folk and jazz influences.

There have been several recordings of this 1975 work, including by the composer himself, but Dutch pianist van Raat matches the best of them. His ad-libbed improvisation towards the end combines minimalism with the pounding brute force of the track that follows. That, Winnsboro Cotton Mill Blues, is the ultimate musical portrait of relentless industrialisation and depersonalisation in our age of machines. Ardently recommended.

CD Reviews (The Straits Times, November 2009)

BARTOK Piano Concertos No.1 & 2
MAURIZIO POLLINI, Piano
Chicago Symphony / CLAUDIO ABBADO
Deutsche Grammophon 477 6353
*****

The great Hungarian composer Bela Bartok (1881-1945) wrote three piano concertos, of which the Third from his last year remains the most popular and accessible. Its two “ugly sisters” are far less often programmed because of the extreme demands on performers and audience. The First (1926) is particularly aggressive, the musical equivalent of a knuckle duster. Virtually a relentless parade of bare octaves and grinding chords, it is also a rhythmic nightmare for the orchestra. The Second (1931) is arguably the greatest of the three. A Stravinskyan opening theme, Bach-like neoclassical elements and Bartok’s own patented “night music” effects make this a most fascinating work.

Italian virtuoso Maurizio Pollini’s legendary 1977 recording has yet to be bettered, in terms of rapier-keen incisiveness and sonic projection. The reward for sitting through 50 minutes of undiluted musical violence is Bartok’s Two Portraits (with violinist Shlomo Mintz and the London Symphony) A work related to his First Violin Concerto, a lyrical theme takes on a reverse-Cinderella transformation – from idealised to grotesque. As always, Bartok rarely disappoints.

ANDRÉ PREVIN
The Great Recordings
EMI Classics 2679692 (10 CDs)
*****

The Berlin-born composer, pianist and conductor André Previn celebrated his 80th birthday this year. He is probably best remembered for his stint at the helm of the London Symphony Orchestra (from 1971 to 1980), where he helped make classical music accessible with a touch of Hollywood glamour. This budget-priced box-set contains blockbuster works he proselytised before they became chic like Messiaen’s 10-movement Turangalila, Rachmaninov’s Second Symphony (one of the first complete recordings) and Shostakovich’s cataclysmic Eighth Symphony.

A healthy dose of Musica Brittanica in Holst’s The Planets, Walton Belshazzar’s Feast and Elgar’s Enigma Variations also helped cement his popularity. Has there been a more satisfying Carl Orff Carmina Burana than Previn’s 1974 recording? His prowess as a pianist is also amply displayed in Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue and Piano Concerto. At super-budget-price, this selection is practically self-recommending.

Hamamatsu International Piano Competition 2009 now on!

The 7th Hamamatsu International Piano Competition is currently in progress, and now into its Second Stage. This competition is one of the most unforgiving, as it admits close to a hundred pianists in its First Stage, all of whom play for just 20 minutes. Sadly, Singapore's involvement has ended with the elimination of Tommy Seah Tsu Tham and Nattapol Tantikarn.

Tommy Seah Tsu Tham, a Singaporean who resides in Perth (Western Australia), performed Bach's Prelude & Fugue in F sharp major (WTC Book 2), Beethoven's Sonata in F sharp major (Op.78, 1st movement) and Liszt's Mephisto Waltz No.1. He displayed much sensitivity in the Bach, and good facility for repeated notes in the Beethoven. Although there was no lack of ardour in the Mephisto Waltz, it requires a certain diablerie which was somewhat short in his performance. Nevertheless, he did Singapore proud.

Nattapol Tantikarn (Thailand) was a student at the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory, now studying in USA. His recital included Bach's Prelude & Fugue in E major (WTC Book 2), Beethoven's Sonata in D major (Op.10 No.3, 1st movement) and Chopin's Sonata No.2 "Funeral March" (Op.35, 1st movement). No major problems with technique, but he seems to lack confidence and a stage demeanor to win over an audience... and jury.

Streaming of "live" performances here:

http://www.piacon.jp/live/en.html

Video archive of past performances may be found here:

http://vod.piacon.jp/

Conservatory Piano Concerto Finals / Review

CONSERVATORY CONCERTO COMPETITION
PIANO FINALS
Yong Siew Toh Conservatory Concert Hall
Tuesday (10 November 2009)

Some of the best things in the world are free. Top of the heap has to be the free student concerts at the Conservatory. Four piano concertos in one evening, performed at a very high professional level, are the stuff of dreams. Remind me not to wake up. This year’s piano concerto competition final was unique – all four of the soloists were Singaporeans, an unprecedented event in the short history of the Conservatory. That’s our tax dollars being put to good use, I have been reminded.

First was Azariah Tan (left) performing Chopin’s Piano Concerto No.1. Has there been a more sensitive musician than this young man who is afflicted with progressive deafness? His problem might explain why certain flourishes in Chopin’s florid writing sound louder than they should, but there is no doubting his ability to carve out flowing lines and achieve a singing cantabile. The slow movement’s Romanza was a prime example of this poetry put into practice. His mastery of prestidigitation – and there were many instances in the Rondo finale – was also awe-inspiring. This was a performance, aided by Bertrand Lee on second piano, that lacked nothing in colour or nuance.

With all the orchestral tuttis truncated, the Chopin concerto played for over half an hour. Cesar Franck’s Variations Symphoniques is only half that length, but what a compact masterpiece it is. Jonathan Shin (left) exhibited great subtlety and suppleness in its unshowy but nonetheless virtuosic piano writing. There were minute changes in dynamics within each extended phrase, and he was instinctual in realising these, varying the colour and shade accordingly. There was nothing superfluous or routine in the playing, which also benefited from very coherent and tight ensemble from the second piano by Zhang Aidi.

After the interval, Khoo Hui Ling (left) in her “Bandung pink” evening gown blew the audience away in Gershwin’s Piano Concerto in F. She was totally at home in its urbane jazzy idiom, and allied the silky touches with fingers of steel. How her slender presence was able to surmount second pianist Akkra Yeunhattaporn’s beefy orchestral reduction was some feat of sound production and projection. In the bluesy slow movement, excellent pedalling lent the simulated portamenti and blues notes much tonal allure. The coruscating finale showed she totally possessed that all-important swagger and swing. Like the song that goes “It don’t mean a thing if it ain’t got that swing”, Hui Ling has got lots of it, and a bit more.

The last item was Chopin’s rarely performed Fantasia on Polish Airs (Op.13), a work which only makes an appearance in Chopin integrales on recordings. It is early Chopin, full of his over-elaborate decorative writing and sometimes unabashed note-spinning. To Zhang Aidi’s (left) credit, she makes a wonderful case for this unashamedly folksy music. Her technique is close to flawless and even the most parochial of moments are made to sound heartfelt. Kudos to her for even including this in her growing repertoire.

Oh, the woes of having to choose from Azariah’s courage and musicianship, Jonathan’s virtuosity and subtlety, Hui Ling’s brawn and bravado, and Aidi’s finesse and adventurousness. Thank goodness I don’t have to play judge and jury here. For the record, the coveted First Prize went to Khoo Hui Ling, who goes on to join the string, wind, brass and percussion winners in the Grand Concerto Concert in February next year.

The finalists with their teachers Thomas Hecht and Albert Tiu,

conservatory dean Bernard Lanskey and guest judge Anna Sleptsova

(Photo by Julie Tan)

Whoever said “There’s no such thing free lunch” has not been anywhere near the Conservatory.

Singapore Musical News in American Record Guide

Its always great to read about Singaporean musicians in a overseas musical period. There are two glowing notices in the November-December 2009 issue of American Record Guide. First is our wonderful girl-next-door Siow Lee Chin's debut CD recording Songs My Father Taught Me:(Click on image to enlarge)

A summary of superlatives from the ever-supportive Robert Markow:

"Seldom have I heard Wieniawski's Concert Polonaise rendered with more flair and visceral enchantment. Rarely have I been more enchanted with Still's Gamin' and Beach's lovely Romance, both played with engaging charm and obvious affection."

"Her technique is flawless... yet it is used only for expressive purposes, never as an end in itself."

"She reveals herself as a fully-formed artist, assertive yet sensitive, infusing meaning into every phrase, taking elegance and finesse to heights seldom reached by her colleagues."

"The sound she draws from that Guadagnini is huge, sumptuous, and rich in every register, reminiscent of David Oistrakh at his peak, with the color of dark amber."

Also in the same issue, a review of Alone, a solo cello recital of 20th and 21st century music by Qin Li-Wei, which includes the World Premiere recording of Ho Chee Kong's Tembusu Evenings.
Is anyone still unconvinced that Singapore is in the midst of a musical renaissance?

Yong Siew Toh Conservatory Orchestra: Tragedy to Majesty / Review

TRAGEDY TO MAJESTY
Yong Siew Toh Conservatory Orchestra
Wang Ya-Hui, Conductor
Conservatory Concert Hall
Saturday (7 November 2009)

This review was published in The Straits Times on 9 November 2009.

Has there been a more apt title for a concert? Or a more astute piece of programming?

The route to glory helmed by Wang Ya-Hui (left) was an unusual one, beginning with the Singapore premiere of Italian avant-gardist Luciano Berio’s Requies, composed in memory of his ex-wife, the soprano Cathy Berberian. Its 15 minutes of reflection and contemplation was static yet chameleonic with its shifting timbres, harmonies and rhythms. Although reflecting Berberian’s amazing vocal range, the music while dissonant was strangely soothing, a restless soul finding final repose.

The performance was both sympathetic and cathartic, also a feat of instrumental cohesion. Much more conventional was Brahms’ Tragic Overture, with the orchestra in full voice. The declamatory opening two chords were marvellously delivered, and the song of the strings that followed evinced true pathos. The intensity and sheer sweep achieved in this reading suggests that convincing performances of the Brahms symphonies should not be too far off.

Two orchestral excerpts from Wagner’s Die Walküre served as encores, including the high decibel Flight Of The Valkyries and Magic Fire Music. The latter saw the hall bathed in cherry red light, definitely a case of taking the title too literally rather than a fit of synaesthesia.

The majesty came in the second half with Beethoven’s Emperor Concerto. To American pianist Thomas Hecht’s (pictured on banner) credit, he did not stop at that. The grandiloquent cadenza on the outset had a freedom which defined the rest of the performance. He did not merely interpret but lived Beethoven’s angst of deafness and despair, evidenced by the angry crashing chords, vehement octaves and paradoxically scintillating fingerwork.

Lovely strings set the B major nocturne of the slow movement in motion, and poetry reigned unabated before the life-affirming Rondo romp of the finale. As tragedy had inched towards majesty, pain had also transformed into pure joy. Although rough and ready in parts, the orchestral partnership was fully attuned with Hecht’s intentions which made for a riveting performance from start to end. Two solo encores, by Beethoven and Soler, sealed an enthralling journey from darkness to light.

SSO Concert: Choo Hoey Returns / Review

CHOO HOEY RETURNS
Singapore Symphony Orchestra

Esplanade Concert Hall
Friday (6 November 2009)

This review was published in The Straits Times on 9 November 2009.

For devoting 17 years of his career as Music Director of the Singapore Symphony Orchestra, it was only appropriate that Choo Hoey be invited back to conduct in its 30th anniversary season. And what leaps and bounds the orchestra he had painstakingly created and nurtured made in the interim.

True to form, Choo delivered yet another Singaporean premiere. Debussy’s Printemps (1887) predated the far more familiar Afternoon Of The Fawn by seven years. The orchestration by Henri Büsser also opened with an atmospheric flute solo, lovingly crafted by Evgueni Brokmiller. This ushered into a luxuriant sound world, straddling between Romantic and impressionist hues, one in which the orchestra was coaxed into a picaresque reading that gently arched from delicacy to ecstasy.

The orchestra then played accommodating partner to young British violinist Chloe Hanslip (left) in Tchaikovsky’s swashbuckling Violin Concerto. Here too much restraint seemed at odds with the diminutive Hanslip’s raging hormones, big tone and outsized gestures. The orchestra trailed in her wake for much of the quicksilver passages as she blazed a fiery path through hell and high water.

Although far from the perfect performance, it had lots of personality and adrenaline, while squeezing every last drop of Romantic excess thought possible. Choo took the supporting role in his stride, after all it was he who introduced the extravagant talents of Lang Lang, Di Wu and Jin Li in their first performances here.

The piece de resistance went to Dvorak’s Eighth Symphony, the sort of work that SSO excelled in its early years, and which showcased the orchestra on its first overseas tour to Scandinavia in 1985. Choo’s view of the work remains untainted by effect for effect’s sake, carving out an honest to goodness reading in which the orchestra responded with warmth and genuine sympathy.

The second movement had every thing going for it. Lush strings, delicate wind solos, concertmaster Alexander Souptel’s lovely cameo, and an insouciant pastoral opening ambling into blustery pathos, all made for an enjoyably scenic ride. The Slavonic dances that ensued and closed the work also had room for sentimentality, before reveling in a faux-pompous climax and ending.

Receiving a chorus of cheers from the audience, Maestro Choo – all of 75 years young – showed there was still much fire in his belly.

VCH Chamber Series / Spectrum: Cage + 5 / Review

VCH Chamber Series: Evening Potpourri
Victoria Concert Hall
Sunday (1 November 2009, 5 pm)
Spectrum: Cage + 5
Esplanade Recital Studio
Sunday (1 November 2009, 7.30 pm)

This review was published in The Straits Times on 3 November 2009.

Contemporary music appears to be winning over a growing audience, judging by the encouraging attendances at the weekend’s chamber concerts. If not, some consolation may be had that the hip image cultivated by the conductors, allied with strong musical values, seems to be drawing them in.

Darrell Ang (left), the epitome of new cool, helmed the Singapore Symphony Orchestra’s chamber concert which was three-quarters modern. First, a J.S.Bach flute sonata, featuring Roberto Alvarez’s silvery tone, soothed the palate. Then the variegated textures of Benjamin Britten’s early Sinfonietta (Op.1) and Singaporean Kelly Tang’s atonal Wind Serenade took over.

The Britten was precocious with its use of bitty themes, developing into three varied movements contrasting strings and winds to marvelous effect, while the Tang was a model of concision and economy. Both paved the way for Aaron Copland’s popular ballet Appalachian Spring, written for Martha Graham, in its original version for 13 instruments. Ang’s quiet authority presided over a performance that mixed atmospheric slow moods with dances bursting with energy. It seemed a pity there were no dancers on stage.

The choreography at the Esplanade was provided by Kawai Shiu (left), the pony-tail sporting composer-conductor who directed the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory New Music Ensemble. His wide-ranging arm movements and gestures resembled some martial arts meister in pugilistic combat as the group mastered a series of treacherously thorny scores.

Again, a wealth of nuance, shade and rhythm defined the diverse music of Isang Yun (Korea), Wu Na (China), Douglas Knehans, Michael Torke (both USA) and Shiu (Hong Kong) himself. Some 32 years separated Yun’s Piece Concertante and Wu’s Culture’s Gift, but were united by a sense of nostalgia for their native cultures. The two Americans had a gift of pulse and kinetic impetus that propelled their music onward, while Shiu’s Three Seasons traversed from violence to an uneasy calm.

Instrumental virtuosity was at a premium throughout and if people needed convincing about the power of new music, that was provided in spades. The iconic John Cage’s Five Squared, performed by just five musicians, opened and closed the concert like some ceremonial ritual. That both identical performances sounded different seemed an uncanny illusion. The magic and chemistry about music is that over the 80 minutes or so, one’s mind had been irreversibly transformed.