Changsha Music Hall
9 June 2018, 8:00
9 June 2018, 8:00
CONCERT REVIEW:
On a recent pleasure, business, and culinary tour of China, I had a lovely week in Changsha, the capital of Hunan Province. As in many large Chinese cities, Changsha has a striking, new, architecturally grand and modern Music Hall. And while fine performances by touring virtuosi playing traditional Chinese instruments are now regular in the U.S., and as well, music conservatories worldwide are flush with talented Chinese classical musicians, no Chinese music or performers were on the docket during my visit. In fact, and not unexpected, it is Western classical music soloists and ensembles who dominate the event calendars of the great Chinese performance venues. And so, on a Saturday night, here on the Far Side of the Northern Hemisphere from home, I headed for the Changsha Music Hall, to hear the Chinese debut of 2017 Cliburn Bronze Medalist and California native, Daniel Hsu, performing music that I know well and love: Chopin, Schubert, and Scriabin. Hěn hǎo!
On a recent pleasure, business, and culinary tour of China, I had a lovely week in Changsha, the capital of Hunan Province. As in many large Chinese cities, Changsha has a striking, new, architecturally grand and modern Music Hall. And while fine performances by touring virtuosi playing traditional Chinese instruments are now regular in the U.S., and as well, music conservatories worldwide are flush with talented Chinese classical musicians, no Chinese music or performers were on the docket during my visit. In fact, and not unexpected, it is Western classical music soloists and ensembles who dominate the event calendars of the great Chinese performance venues. And so, on a Saturday night, here on the Far Side of the Northern Hemisphere from home, I headed for the Changsha Music Hall, to hear the Chinese debut of 2017 Cliburn Bronze Medalist and California native, Daniel Hsu, performing music that I know well and love: Chopin, Schubert, and Scriabin. Hěn hǎo!
The young, smooth-playing virtuoso did not disappoint, beautifully spinning out his 'Chopin and Friends' recital program; a web of romanticism that caught this listener off guard by its warmth and artistry. From a 20-year-old American? Yes, indeed! This was a rondo of Chopin monuments -- the Fantasy, Opus 49, the great A-flat Polonaise, Opus 53, and the Sonata #2 in B-flat -- with Schubert's Sonata in A Major, D. 664, and the wild Opus 28 Fantasie of Scriabin set between them.
Hsu' s Chopin Fantasy unfolded very naturally; 'semplice' with the calm, quiet themes, and as well, with little strain bringing on the fireworks. The balance of tenderness and force is always key in Chopin. Hsu kept the passagework details clear, and saved full force very effectively, yielding a satisfying start to the evening. Schubert's Sonata #13, a personal favorite of mine, proffers strict Classical forms and crystalline phrases, even as its penetrating expressions climb well beyond those bounds, providing a steadying repose from the romanticism swirling around it in this program. The 'Allegro Moderato' opening is resplendently lyrical, with a surge of powerful drama in its development, and a great match for this soloist's generous tone. When performed, as here, without repeats, shows this musical poetry's perfect balance. The 'Andante', maybe the musical low point for me, was a rather brisk stroll. Sviatoslav Richter, this was not. Hsu swept the drama along, a bit quickly for my taste, losing some subtlety along the way. Even at that pace, he still found a hint of the melancholy within. The finale, a crisp little Sonata Allegro, is the sprightly pinnacle of both technique and emotion. This energetic collection of sharply contrasting themes and textures was navigated with relative brilliance by Hsu. The hard-edged transitions and climaxes were powerfully stated, while a soft rounding touch finished most phrases. Each of these three of movements ends with a precious, delicately scripted codetta. Overstatement of any one, can ruin all. Here, happily, each was beautifully understated.
With little motion wasted or exaggerated for show, Hsu's manner with the instrument is efficient and elegant. And what a grand instrument this Steinway 'D' was! Luxurious in tone and overtone, it exquisitely responded to the artist's touch. As a pianist, this is the kind of pianoforte that temps one to forgo the the sumptuous Hunan zheng hào chī reception/revelation that awaits, of red-pepper-laden river fish and accoutrement, in favor of returning to a dark, hall-empty stage for wild love-making -- that is, rehearsing and polishing repertoire for future recital programs -- with this 88-key knockout!
Easily the crowd favorite was the Chopin Polonaise, and this was a full-bodied, fresh rendition. In the Changsha Symphony Hall -- there are three concert halls in this sprawling complex -- the sound is extremely alive for solo piano, requiring great control of pedalled sonorities. During a few occasions early on, broad, low reverberations did threaten to overpower the fine craftsmanship above. I believe Daniel could hear this -- not possible in many acoustic environments -- and made smart decisions and good adjustments along the way. This was a precise, robust, and fun first-half finish. You wish YOU played like that!
As a decades-long Scriabinite, it is difficult to admit that I now had to educate myself about the Fantasie, Opus 28. From 1900 -- the turn of the 20th century -- this is the ignition switch for the flames of passion exploding through the 4th and 5th sonatas, and the 'Poem of Ecstasy'. It is lugubriously thick and seemingly impossible to play, so I wondered which fool had tricked Daniel into learning it, though he claims to have been seduced by the main theme melody. In any case, this was the monster on the program, and tackled straight on by this soloist. Though not a definition of "tough love", this one-movement Fantasie is extremely tough to hold together, and performing it in public, truly an act of love! It appears less disciplined in its construction, for a formalist like Scriabin, than his early sonatas. Compositionally, to my ear, it bridges the wandering first movement of the Sonata #2, and the unhinged explorations of Sonata #6 and beyond. It wants no boundaries, yet gravity never fails to prevail over any and every earthly passion. Only when Scriabin had discarded traditional tonality in favor of the synthesized harmonic stases reached in his later works, was he able to explore beyond conventional emotional boundaries, which then at times left him dangerously close to the lurking psychological abyss (see Sonata #10 and 'Vers la Flame'). For me personally, and all other too-late Romantics in house, this was pure glory. For the less electric, eclectic, and eccentric personalities in the crowd? Well, the artist is best who remains true to himself.
With little motion wasted or exaggerated for show, Hsu's manner with the instrument is efficient and elegant. And what a grand instrument this Steinway 'D' was! Luxurious in tone and overtone, it exquisitely responded to the artist's touch. As a pianist, this is the kind of pianoforte that temps one to forgo the the sumptuous Hunan zheng hào chī reception/revelation that awaits, of red-pepper-laden river fish and accoutrement, in favor of returning to a dark, hall-empty stage for wild love-making -- that is, rehearsing and polishing repertoire for future recital programs -- with this 88-key knockout!
Easily the crowd favorite was the Chopin Polonaise, and this was a full-bodied, fresh rendition. In the Changsha Symphony Hall -- there are three concert halls in this sprawling complex -- the sound is extremely alive for solo piano, requiring great control of pedalled sonorities. During a few occasions early on, broad, low reverberations did threaten to overpower the fine craftsmanship above. I believe Daniel could hear this -- not possible in many acoustic environments -- and made smart decisions and good adjustments along the way. This was a precise, robust, and fun first-half finish. You wish YOU played like that!
As a decades-long Scriabinite, it is difficult to admit that I now had to educate myself about the Fantasie, Opus 28. From 1900 -- the turn of the 20th century -- this is the ignition switch for the flames of passion exploding through the 4th and 5th sonatas, and the 'Poem of Ecstasy'. It is lugubriously thick and seemingly impossible to play, so I wondered which fool had tricked Daniel into learning it, though he claims to have been seduced by the main theme melody. In any case, this was the monster on the program, and tackled straight on by this soloist. Though not a definition of "tough love", this one-movement Fantasie is extremely tough to hold together, and performing it in public, truly an act of love! It appears less disciplined in its construction, for a formalist like Scriabin, than his early sonatas. Compositionally, to my ear, it bridges the wandering first movement of the Sonata #2, and the unhinged explorations of Sonata #6 and beyond. It wants no boundaries, yet gravity never fails to prevail over any and every earthly passion. Only when Scriabin had discarded traditional tonality in favor of the synthesized harmonic stases reached in his later works, was he able to explore beyond conventional emotional boundaries, which then at times left him dangerously close to the lurking psychological abyss (see Sonata #10 and 'Vers la Flame'). For me personally, and all other too-late Romantics in house, this was pure glory. For the less electric, eclectic, and eccentric personalities in the crowd? Well, the artist is best who remains true to himself.
Chopin's B-minor Sonata brought the evening's steepest technical and interpretive challenges. Again, this young virtuoso seemed to handle the serious task at hand with ease, confidently sculpting the intricate details required to deliver the emotional depth and range of Chopin's dramatic score. Two things most stood out for me. One, the easy super-speed and subtlety of the 'Presto. Sotto voce e legato' finale -- worth every silken slide across the keys. And the utter perfection of Hsu's 'Lento, Marche funèbre' rendition. Is the funeral march too well known and over-played as to preclude a fresh or profound reading? I quickly succumbed to this great match of masterly melody, robustly gorgeous-voiced instrument, and natural singing-tone touch pianist, as it worked its magic. Would the exquisite grading of tone and perfect execution falter, even one smidgen, in this live performance? No, it would not, as I was transported, smiling, to 'dolce vita', on a higher plane...
While my own appreciation and enthusiasm for this recital were quite high and well-earned, there was one powerfully compromising caveat which cast a blanketing pall over all of these otherwise lovely proceedings: a substantial portion of the audience was made up of children, including very young ones. As the crowd filed in, and continued to file in, all the way through the intermission, I was initially quite taken aback and somewhat aghast by what was happening. The artist was talented, the acoustics were excellent, and the concert grand Steinway, magnificent. And there actually were notices posted stating that no children under the height of one metre(?) are allowed in the auditorium, except for events specifically billed for kids. Was this concert thus set up and advertised? I think not, and know that the soloist was equally surprised, if not shocked, to look out from the stage and see a large contingent of children.
My initial thought was, "Poor Chopin!", to have to communicate through a certain level of crowd noise, as we are highly attuned to the value of almost breathless silence from classical concert audiences. Nevertheless, this was the reality at hand. And while the clarity of sound was not pristine -- I did once shush a young boy sitting in the row ahead of me with a finger snap -- my ability to hear the details of Hsu's phrase-shaping and sense of architecture were not seriously compromised.
My initial thought was, "Poor Chopin!", to have to communicate through a certain level of crowd noise, as we are highly attuned to the value of almost breathless silence from classical concert audiences. Nevertheless, this was the reality at hand. And while the clarity of sound was not pristine -- I did once shush a young boy sitting in the row ahead of me with a finger snap -- my ability to hear the details of Hsu's phrase-shaping and sense of architecture were not seriously compromised.
I happened to sit next to Miao Yi Zeng, an English-speaking, U.S.-trained, local Chinese piano teacher, who acknowledged Hsu's diminished artistic opportunity, while expressing deep appreciation for the gift to those young audience members to be able to experience this performance by a very talented recitalist -- the best she had heard in Changsha. I had already wanted to meet Daniel, and given these unusual circumstances, made sure, at intermission, that I could go backstage to greet and debrief him after the show, which he appeared to deeply appreciate.
Changsha, a city of about 9 million people, is not Hong Kong or Wuhan or Shanghai or Beijing in terms of Western classical music fans. My guess is that not until the youngsters in this audience grow up, that this venue will fill with eager, well-informed listeners. No doubt it was disheartening to suddenly realise that the impact of an expected solidly artistic foreign debut would be significantly diminished by this particular limiting context of the performance. Daniel admitted as much, and that the superlative quality of the piano helped hold him to his own high artistic standards. Dedicated musicians understand that knowledgeable individuals and impressionable young minds will be present to take in their performance, even those performed under very difficult or strained circumstances. Certainly, all of the more educated ears in this audience give Daniel credit for persevering to deliver a high quality performance. Anything less would have been truly disappointing.
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| Daniel Hsu, with local instructor Zeng and critic/enthusiast Gendel |
Zheng hǎo, Daniel, and Bravo!
~ Steven Gendel
HEAR IT - Humanity's Expressive Artists Reveal & Illuminate Truth
~ Steven Gendel
HEAR IT - Humanity's Expressive Artists Reveal & Illuminate Truth
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