Kristian Lindberg after his performance for NADSA Concerts with sponsor of the concert Penelope Stinton
Kristian Lindberg’s concert for NADSA programmed 5 well known and familiar composers who span very different musical styles. However Kristian’s performance took us well beyond the familiar, - it was outstanding.
His rendition of Handel’s Chaconne in G had ringing baroque ornamentation, and yes, it had the life of a dance: stately and reserved at times. His even touch was befitting music composed for the harpsichord.
Kristian told us how we would be hearing music from different bygone eras. Some would be ‘new’; well we call 100 year old music ‘new’. He also, with reverence, related how Bach was fascinated by other composers’ styles, and he speculated as to how wide his scope of interest would be in modern-day music: Hip-Hop maybe?
Bach’s English Suite No2 in A minor was to follow, English by name but French by nature. The Suite is a collection of 7 dances: some were lively, some meandering and there was a stately sarabande. All were performed with an even, moderate touch and minimal pedalling. This allowed the intricacies of the composition to be clear, as would have been the case with a harpsichord.
It was so refreshing, during the performances of both these baroque pieces, to have forgotten how virtuosic they are. We could just wallow in lush ornamentation and compulsively fascinating patterns. Surely we were experiencing the highest level of artistic performance.
The audience was amused by Kristian, presumably forgetting he was no longer in Norway, starting to tell us about Mozart, in Norwegian. Mozart’s Sonata No 10 in C, took us into the classical style of elegance and lyrical harmonies. The sensitivity of a piano, for which this was written, brought a new dimension to volume and phrasing, and Kristian illustrated this admirably. It was as though he were playing a different instrument, and beautifully at that! There was elegance of phrasing and discrete ornamentation; we even had glimpses of Mozart’s impish playfulness. But though there were fun and sparkles, it is the singing serenity in the Andante and hushed pianissimos that stay with me.
Ravel’s ‘Valses nobles et sentimentales’ threw us headlong into the early 20th century with impressionism in the visual arts and whatever one labels experimentation in music. At its Parisian premier, this work had been greeted with boos and catcalls: no such reaction from a Nadsa audience. From the startling opening bars we were taken on a gripping journey of contrasting moods. Between bursts of energy and dissonances we had subdued introspection and flowing ripples. It was as through Ravel was playing with our senses, and Kristian, with his sumptuous phrasing, use of rubato and silences, was masterful.
With Rachmaninov programmed, many of us immediately have thoughts of Brief Encounter and the second piano concerto; however his Sonata No 2 in B flat minor is different and less well known. It lacks the sustained haunting melody lines, but is packed with unmistakably Rachmaninov harmonies and surging romanticism. So, even though the first version of this was written, in Russia, shortly after Ravel’s ‘Valses’, the style is romantic, albeit with some unusual harmonies. Rachmaninov produced a revised version in the USA almost 30 years later, however, like several renowned pianists before him, Kristian played his own version. With its violent drama and wistful interludes it was heart-rending: a direct emotional experience.
Rapturous applause and a standing ovation from the capacity audience followed Kristian’s dramatic conclusion. As an encore he played Grieg’s March of the Trolls, something of a light relief. However, a member of the audience, on exiting, commented she was emotionally drained!
I am sure this concert will be remembered as a high point on people’s calendar.
This concert was sponsored by Nadsa member Penelope Stinton
NADSA Concert, Sunday 20th October 3.30pm at The Courtenay Centre, Newton Abbot.
JRC