Post by C.Cat on Feb 16, 2010 14:28:05 GMT
It's pretty amazing that we got to see Murray Perahia - not only is he one of the greatest pianists in the world but in the 90s he was unable to perform for several years because of a problem with his hands. But now he's recovered and plays like a musician at his peak. The first piece he played was Keyboard Partita No.6 by J.S. Bach, and as soon as he started playing, I was struck by how good the piano sounded with the Bridgewater Hall's acoustics. It was a pretty technical sounding piece, but it wasn't cold and mechanical like some people think. I used my binoculars to watch the piano's hammers moving, as I was on the wrong side to see his hands.
The next piece was Piano Sonata No.30 in E major by Beethoven, which began reflectively before surging in strength, with subtle runs of notes leading to sudden outbursts. He played with such energy that his hair was shaken out of place! It's remarkable how fresh the music sounds despite being composed in 1820.
It was all Chopin after the interval, starting with Ballade No.3 in A flat major, which started out sounding quite peaceful, but then got darker. After that we heard Three Etudes: Op.25 No.5 in E minor, Op.25 No.1 in A flat major and Op.10 No.4 in C sharp minor. I got an interesting experience at the beginning, when it felt like I could feel the notes spiraling out of the piano.
Then it was Three Mazurkas: Op.59 No.2 in A flat major, Op.50 No.3 in C sharp minor and Op.59 No.3 in F sharp minor. This was followed by Nocturne No.7 in C sharp minor, which was somber and thoughtful with rising tension. The last piece of the programme was Scherzo No.4 in E major, which had him working up and down the full length of the piano. A man in the audience then got up to present him with a bunch of flowers. The performance went so well, that after leaving the stage, he came back for two encores. I didn't catch what the first piece was, and the second one was by Chopin again, which had some great thundering chords.
The next piece was Piano Sonata No.30 in E major by Beethoven, which began reflectively before surging in strength, with subtle runs of notes leading to sudden outbursts. He played with such energy that his hair was shaken out of place! It's remarkable how fresh the music sounds despite being composed in 1820.
It was all Chopin after the interval, starting with Ballade No.3 in A flat major, which started out sounding quite peaceful, but then got darker. After that we heard Three Etudes: Op.25 No.5 in E minor, Op.25 No.1 in A flat major and Op.10 No.4 in C sharp minor. I got an interesting experience at the beginning, when it felt like I could feel the notes spiraling out of the piano.
Then it was Three Mazurkas: Op.59 No.2 in A flat major, Op.50 No.3 in C sharp minor and Op.59 No.3 in F sharp minor. This was followed by Nocturne No.7 in C sharp minor, which was somber and thoughtful with rising tension. The last piece of the programme was Scherzo No.4 in E major, which had him working up and down the full length of the piano. A man in the audience then got up to present him with a bunch of flowers. The performance went so well, that after leaving the stage, he came back for two encores. I didn't catch what the first piece was, and the second one was by Chopin again, which had some great thundering chords.
