FAVOURITE CLASSICS / Braddell Heights Symphony Orchestra / Review

FAVOURITE CLASSICS / Braddell Heights Symphony Orchestra
SCO Singapore Conference Hall / Sunday (29 May 2011)

I am no masochist but I do enjoy concerts by the Braddell Heights Symphony Orchestra (BHSO), Singapore’s only community orchestra. Being an amateur musician myself, I will never turn a nose at fellow amateurs pursuing what they enjoy, the passion of music making. Even if it is not at the same hallowed levels as groups like the Orchestra of the Music Makers or Philharmonic Orchestra (the best “amateur” orchestras in Singapore), effort and enthusiasm is what counts, and the BHSO has it in good measure.

Its latest concert had the usual share of highs and lows. A smaller orchestra than usual turned up for heavyweights like the Prelude to Act I of Wagner’s Mastersingers of Nuremberg and Tchaikovsky’s Pathetique Symphony. No matter, it generated a big sound, largely due to an overachieving, blustery and sometimes wild brass section and rather decent woodwinds. The string sound was very thin at parts but carried the melodies efficiently. The ensemble struggled in the busy counterpoint in the Wagner but it all came together for the final apotheosis.

The Tchaikovsky was a very ambitious effort, which paid off to a fair degree. Bassoonist Peter Lendermann provided a very steady opening solo, thus setting the tone for the rest of the first movement. The big “Pathetique” melody came across rather ragged when heard for the first time, owing to the strings and brass not being on the same frame of mind, so to speak. It was clarinettist Chen Weiling’s confident solos that eased the nerves somewhat. For the explosive development, the brass brayed and snarled, providing the dramatic episode its full quotient of bite and angst.

The second movement’s waltz was neither the most effortless nor graceful, but it had a good sense of rhythm, well marshalled by conductor Yan Yin Wing. There was something ungainly about the Scherzo’s march to the abyss, but it gathered paced inexorably, its irresistible momentum being the true driving force. Through all this, one could hear the individual quotations of Beethoven’s Fate motif by the wind and brass instruments, as well as sense the underlying tension as the screw is being turned. There was the customary misplaced applause which led into the depressing finale. The vale of tears brought on by the themes of descending notes revealed the music’s heart-wrenching quality. The climax of this deeply felt performance was well deserving of the applause it was accorded.

In between the two imposing works was Mozart’s slender Piano Concerto No.27 in B flat major (K.595), his last. The opening tutti was taken at too leisurely a pace. Sounding very raw and sluggish, this provided the guest soloist Albert Lin little to work upon. Unable to exert himself and force the pace against the will of the ensemble, the first movement was mired down in treacle. However the crystalline quality of his playing, always alert to the music’s finer points, was the saving grace of the performance.

Thankfully, both the slow movement and Rondo finale saw the piano deliver the opening gambits. Only then did the music take shape and given the necessary lift. The graceful Andante was lightly and tastefully ornamented, while good humour and high spirits dominated the Rondo. The cadenzas were well-turned and the performance closed on a high.

Those who know Albert to be a barnstorming virtuoso also got to see this side in his encore, the outrageous Arcadi Volodos version of Mozart’s Rondo alla Turca. Delivered with absolute bravura and panache, the concert had finally come to life.

A Heritage Journey: Elegance of Nanyin / Singapore Arts Festival 2011 / Review

A HERITAGE JOURNEY: ELEGANCE OF NANYIN
Singapore Arts Festival 2011 / Singapore Chinese Orchestra
Esplanade Concert Hall / Saturday (28 May 2011)

This review was published in The Straits Times on 30 May 2011 with the title "Elegant ensemble of sound".

Nanyin, translated as “Southern music”, is an ancient musical tradition from the Southern Chinese province of Fujian. Referred to as a “living fossil”, its legacy of chamber music involves solo voice and a small assortment of instruments, performed by a small ensemble. How such a genre of diminutiveness and intimacy translated into a concert with a large group like the Singapore Chinese Orchestra was a bold experiment and labour of love.

Hong Kong-based composer Law Wai Lun had sympathetically incorporated Nanyin into a larger framework of a six-movement symphony. Lasting almost 80 minutes, the results were revelatory if not totally original.

The first movement, Splendour Of Erythrina City, featured the full orchestra with a stirring choral part sung by the Victoria Chorale and Vocal Consort, sounding like an Oriental version of Orff’s Carmina Burana. However their words were in Mandarin, rather than the authentic Minnanese (Hokkien) dialect, thus detracting from the original premise.

This was more than made up by the appearance of singer Li Bai Yan from the Quanzhou Nanyin Ensemble whose sleight of hand on two sibao (wooden clappers), shaken at two totally different rhythms, was matched by her pristine voice. Heard in the original tongue, the roots, heart and soul of Nanyin came to the fore unequivocally.

In The Magnificent Steeds, a steady gallop rhythm was maintained by the Quanzhou group, dressed in traditional costumes and seated at the highest point on the stage. Wang Da Hao on the dongxiao (a woodwind blown like the recorder) and Zeng Jia Yang on nanpa (a horizontally placed lute) were protagonists for this exquisitely poised and brilliantly paced music.

Through all this and the fourth movement Harmonious Court Music, which conductor Yeh Tsung humorously called “insect music”, the orchestra played sotto voce throughout, exerting an reassuring presence but never overwhelming the delicate balance of instrumental solos. Li’s ethereal voice returned for the fifth movement Celestial Sounds, where the use of echoes and chorus heightened its mystique.

Our nation’s definitive connection with Nanyin was most apparent in the finale Passing On The Ancient Flame, with the Siong Leng Musical Association playing a pivotal role. A song by its late Chairman Teng Mah Seng, Singapore’s foremost Nanyin exponent, was incorporated into the score and Lin Shaoling’s tenor lent a poignant counterpoint to Li’s. The music was decidedly more contemporary with an Indian tabla providing the driving impetus.

There was a grand apotheosis, but the muted ending seemed the more appropriate one. One male speaking voice in Hokkien emerged above a sea of babbling voices, intoning, “I am a Hokkien, so was my father,… and I could never be anybody else,” more or less summed up the sentiment. The journey of music across cultures was now complete.

Another of Singapore's Best Kept Secrets: Singapore Quarry @ Bukit Timah

Another of Singapore's best kept secrets. Its hard to find a spot of peace and quiet within Singapore's hustle and bustle. The old disused Singapore Quarry, on the western face of Bukit Timah Hill provides that kind of respite. And its not too inaccessible, just a one kilometre walk off the Dairy Farm Road entrance or half that distance if you come through Rail Mall (Fuyong Estate).

A view of the Dairy Farm entrance and Hume Heights.

A short history of the Singapore Quarry. Formerly the site of a granite quarry, its now a little lake and artificial wetlands, but a totally peaceful spot for observing natural flora and fauna.

A short board walk and viewing platform.

This artificially created wetlands is a haven for birds too.

A sampling of its flora and fauna includes a lazy monitor lizard out on its midday stroll.

ILYA RASHKOVSKIY wins 3rd Prize in Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Competition 2011

Russian pianist ILYA RASHKOVSKIY, who has performed three times in Singapore in recent years, has been awarded 3rd Prize in the prestigious Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Competition 2011 in Tel Aviv, Israel.

This is his latest accolade in an already impressive array of competition appearances, including:

1st Prize, Hong Kong International Piano Competition 2005

2nd Prize, Marguerite Long International Piano Competion (Paris) 2002

2nd Prize, Vianna da Motta International Piano Competition (Lisbon) 2010

4th Prize, Queen Elisabeth International Piano Competition (Brussels) 2007

For the record, he performed Prokofiev's Piano Concerto No.2 and Mozart's Piano Concerto No.24 in the finals of the Rubinstein Competition.

The final standings were as follows:

1. Daniil Trifonov (Russia) / 2. Boris Giltburg (Israel) / 3. Ilya Rashkovskiy (Russia) / 4. Eric Zuber (USA) / 5. Alexandre Moutouzkine (Russia) / 6. Kotaro Fukuma (Japan)

CD Reviews (The Straits Times, May 2011)

BACH Flute Sonatas (arranged for recorder)
HUGO REYNE, Recorder / Mirare 038 / *****

J.S.Bach wrote a small collection of works for flute with basso continuo accompaniment, spanning over a couple of decades. Unlike his usual sets of six works for other instruments, these were isolated pieces, written for certain performers in mind. The Sonata (BWV.1033) from 1731 was thought to be a joint work by Bach senior and his 17-year--old son Carl Philipp Emanuel. Three of four sonatas in this album and the Suite (BWV.977) are conceived in the four-movement schema of the sonata da chiesa (church sonata), alternating slow and fast movements.

Although transposed for the recorder, these works sound perfectly idiomatic, with Hugo Reyne crafting a totally pleasing tone that soothes the ear. His partners Emmanuelle Guigues (viola da gamba) and Pierre Hantai (harpsichord) make a solid team for these pieces. Listen for the counterpoint in the fugues and the brisk finales, which take the form of lively gigues. These 70 minutes make totally enjoyable listening.

An afternoon in Johor Bahru

Just a crazy idea of mine to spend an afternoon with my son in Malaysia - Johor Bahru to be exact. Its just a short hop on the SBS 170 service, which crosses the Causeway and deposits you on the Johor side - for good food and inexpensive shopping!

Now is this Singapore's Orchard Road? No. its Johor Bahru's Jalan Tun Abdul Razak, with the humongous City Square shopping centre on the left. Note the HDB apartment blocks in the right background - that's Singapore's Woodlands just across the Causeway. City Square (below) is another of JB's megamalls - lots of shopping to be done.


This is the "new look" of once sleepy Johor Bahru, with lots of construction still going on. The spanking new JB Sentral railway station (below) is an impressive site and sight.

The old Johor Bahru railway station (above) is now dwarfed next to the mega-construction that goes on in the city. A juxtaposition of the new and old, of stainless steel and brick, may be appreciated in this vista (below).

Guess what? The 5.15pm train to Singapore's Tanjong Pagar station has been cancelled. The komputer sistem is still rosak (kaput), apparently on both sides of the Causeway. So its a dreary bus ride back to Singapore, with loads of shopping, and a final view of the Causeway at dusk (below).

PIANOMANIA gets 100,000 hits!

As of yesterday afternoon, PIANOMANIA has received 100,000 pageviews! I've never really bothered with how many people read this blog until Blogspot added a counter element into the site sometime in May last year. So the numbers date from May 2010, rather than July 2008 when I first started the blog.

I am also pleased to report that Pianomania was received in 81 different nations on 6 different continents (from Azerbaijan to Yemen), largely due to the power of Google.

The most visited post was my Straits Times review of SSO's Poets of Poland concert (thanks to my ACS(I) fans) with over 1300 hits, followed by my Sunday Times review of Graeme Poll's controversial footballing memoirs.

THANK YOU, for your support!

CHILDREN OF MUSIC FOR CHILDREN OF JAPAN / Review

CHILDREN OF MUSIC 

FOR CHILDREN OF JAPAN
Chopin Society of Singapore
Esplanade Recital Studio
Friday (20 May 2011)

An edited version of this review was published in The Straits Times on 23 May 2011 with the title "Talented showcase of Chopin".

The recent natural disasters in Japan have given cause for another charity concert, the latest organised by the Chopin Society of Singapore. This recital presented twelve young pianists aged 9 to 20, all living in Southeast Asia and winners of the First International Chopin Competition Singapore (2010). All’s the pity that the event was organised in relative haste, hardly publicised, drawing only a small audience.

The programme was varied, and given the limited playing time for each performer, tended to showcase the technically spectacular over the spiritually profound. Some were not ready for their pieces. For example, a 16-year-old Indonesian girl had neither the fluency nor razor-sharp wit for Poulenc’s Three Novelettes. And while an 11-year-old Singaporean boy had all the notes for Debussy’s elusive Eleventh Etude strung together, did he actually understand what he was playing?

Kennis Ang, Nicole Ong
& Celestine Yoong (from L to R)

There were, of course, well-groomed lasses licensed to thrill. The two youngest were among the most impressive. 9-year-old Celestine Yoong (Malaysia) dextrously articulated the birdcalls of Rameau’s Le rappel des oiseaux with enviable ease while Kennis Ang (Singapore) was nonchalantly agile in Earl Wild’s finger-contorting transcription of Gershwin’s I Got Rhythm. It was as if both were saying “I got fingers!” And what fingers those were!

Some maturity worked to the advantage of Nicole Ong (12, Singapore) and Jennifer Ongkowijoyo (13, Indonesia). The former’s reading of Debussy’s Jardins sous la pluie (Gardens in the Rain) was full of light and shade, marvellously pedalled, while the latter keenly brought out the dramatics for the first movement of Mozart’s Sonata in C Minor (K.457) and a Brahms Capriccio.

Zhaoyang Mingtian,
Kseniia Vohkmianina & Azariah Tan (L to R)

The best performances came after the interval, beginning with Kseniia Vokhmianina (20, Ukraine) in a passionate and rock-steady performance of Chopin’s Fantasy in F minor (Op.49). Her blonde flowing locks belied the gravity of her masterly interpretation. Cherubic-looking Randy Ryan (15, Indonesia) played a mean devil in Liszt’s First Mephisto Waltz, unafraid of taking risks for which fistfuls of wrong notes were readily atoned.

Azariah Tan (19, Singapore) provided the sublime element in the opening movement of Schumann’s Fantasy in C major (Op.17), where a plethora of young love, nostalgia, longing and regret came gloriously to bear. Leaving the best for the last, the statuesque Zhaoyang Mingtian (17, China) applied the last degree of polish to a Chopin Mazurka and Tchaikovsky’s tragic Dumka. A lot more will be heard from these talented young people in the near future.

If you wish to contribute to the Orphans of the Tohoku Earthquake, please visit: www.ashinaga.org

Buying Malaysian rail tickets should be be a cinch, right?

Buying a train ticket to Kuala Lumpur should be as simple as ABC, right? Think again. All that fuss over the closing of the old Tanjong Pagar Railway Station in July 2011 had got me gushing with nostalgia. For a very last fling, I had on impulse decided to take a rail trip up north to Kuala Lumpur and back, with an overnight stay to catch the Malaysian Philharmonic and meet up with old friends. The date: 17 June. The catch: tickets are only available for sale 30 days before the actual date of the trip. Here’s how easy it is to buy a ticket.

Wednesday 19 May: The gentleman in the kaunter tiket (ticket counter) booth politely informs me that ticket sales begin 30 days before the date, not 31 days. So I should come back tomorrow after 8.30am.

Thursday 20 May: The day has arrived. I come after work at 6.30pm, and find a long queue ahead of me. I wait patiently for about 15 minutes. Finally its my turn, and the lady at the counter informs me that the komputer sistem is down, and I should come back tomorrow, or buy the tickets through the Internet.

Friday 21 May: I log into the Keretapi Tanah Melayu (KTM) website, and create an account for myself. However the sistem appears to be designed for rocket scientists. No drop-down menus are to be found, and one has to fill in the exact service, time of departure (not available on the same page or anywhere easily accessible), as well as the names and passport numbers of all who are travelling. One wonders what happens should I be asked to fill in my kredit kard details? So I quit trying.

Saturday 21 May: I head to Tanjong Pagar first thing in the morning. There is no queue (!), however there’s as sign stating that the komputer system is still faulty. I suppose they are waiting for a technician from Kuala Lumpur to arrive (by rail, I imagine). That’s likely to be Monday. I console myself with a plate of mee rebus.

Monday 23 May: There's an article in The Straits Times today about the sudden surge of rail ticket sales by like-minded people who want to relive their glory rail days. So I can't possibly wait till Wednesday afternoon to get my tickets, can I? So I break early from work this morning and make that trip to Tanjong Pagar. Surely they would have gotten the komputer sistem fixed, right?

Not a chance. Its 12.45 pm and the guy (and queue jumper) in front of me is told that he should call up the main ticket call centre in Kuala Lumpur to get his ticket. So is there any chance that I can reserve and pay for the tickets today, and then collect the hard copy on another day, after the sistem has been fixed? The lady in the ticket booth looks sympathetic to my plight, and says she'll try... but later in the afternoon. That is after the 1 pm train leaves. Having expended one half-hour car park coupon, I decided to soak in the atmosphere, sip on a teh tarik, and watch those with the 1 o'clock tickets chase after the leaving train. "Those lucky blighters," thought I. There's still a long queue at the kaunter tiket, so I return home for a nap.

I return in the evening, and the lady tells me that all the komputer sistems are down, even in Kuala Lumpur. I should now e-mail the KTM Call Centre in Kuala Lumpur in order to make a reservation, which will later be printed out as tickets in Singapore once the computers get back on track. When that will be, only Allah knows. My son and I have maggi mee goreng for dinner. At this rate, I will have sampled every dish in Tanjong Pagar pretty soon.

Tuesday 24 May: So I dutifully send an e-mail to callcenter@ktmb.com.my (note the Americanised spelling), and to my pleasant surprise I get a polite reply within the same day. The lady asks for the details of all travelling but no kredit kard figures required. Phew! I will thus be given a Reservation number, with which I will be able to buy my tikets when the komputer sistem is back. Should I hold my breath?

Wednesday 25 May: YESSSS! The Call Center in KL has replied with a reservation number and my tickets have been confirmed. Meanwhile, I also get good news from my bestman Sherman who has bought my return tickets in Kuala Lumpur. So my rail holiday will finally come true, after five visits to Tanjong Pagar station and a couple of anxious nights. When I last checked, the komputer sistem is still down.

Visit Malaysia. The time is Now? What about next week, next month, next year, next century?

CD Reviews (The Straits Times, May 2011)

MEXICO!
ROLANDO VILLAZON, Tenor / Bolivar Soloists
Deutsche Grammophon 477 8769 / ****1/2

There cannot be a music lover who does not know a few Mexican songs. Here is a collection of the most popular, sung with passion by the Mexican operatic tenor of the moment, and more. Not only does Rolando Villazon infuse these mostly love songs such as Agustin Lara’s Solamente Una Vez and Alfonso Oteo’s Un Viejo Amor with hot-blooded fervour but also rises to plethoric climaxes in full-throated glory. One also marvels at his ringing long-held notes in Tomas Mendez’s Cucurucucu, Paloma. Not bad for one recovering from debilitating vocal cord polyps.

Did anyone know that the composer of the familiar Besame Mucho was a woman, one Consuelo Velazquez? Or that Maria Grever, who wrote Despedida and the delectable Te Queiro, Dijiste, was a student of Debussy? One also gets to hear Manuel Ponce’s Estrellita, more commonly heard in arrangements, in its original guise. Simply lovely, whatever the version. To close, Quirino Mendoza’s Cielito Lindo, the catchy song that goes “Ai yai yai yai…”, and the ubiquitous La Cucaracha catch Villazon in his element. The Bolivar Soloists and guests, more than a folk ensemble, also impress with excellent instrumentals. Mucho enjoyable.

Academy of Ancient Music / Singapore Arts Festival 2011 / Review

ACADEMY OF ANCIENT MUSIC / Singapore Arts Festival 2011
Esplanade Concert Hall / Tuesday (17 May 2011)

This review was published in The Straits Times on 19 May 2011 with the title "Pleasurable rare sounds".

It is no secret that Baroque music hardly gets heard in Singapore. On the rare occasion that Bach, Handel or Vivaldi is performed, it is invariably on modern instruments. The culture of period performance practice simply does not exist here, and we are poorer for it.

Thus it is always a pleasure when imported acts bring its lightness and litheness in sound textures into our concert halls. The Academy of Ancient Music (AAM), formed by Christopher Hogwood in 1973, is founded on the principles of authentic music-making. All its stringed instruments use gut strings instead of metal strings, producing a softer and mellow sound, which has far less vibrato than their modern counterparts.

Ensembles of antiquity also performed in much smaller venues, where the need for sound projection is less crucial. Having said that, the 18-member AAM directed by Richard Egarr from the harpsichord performed a varied programme that was intimate in sonority yet quite comfortably filled the vast expanse of Esplanade Concert Hall.

All the composers featured were familiar names, but the works were by no means often heard in concert. The Sinfonia from Handel’s opera Saul opened the show, an unusually extended piece in four parts alternating between fast and slow. If parts of it had a sense of déjà vu, it was because the opening theme resembled Lift Up Your Heads from Messiah.

The mainstay of the Baroque was the concerto grosso rather than the symphony, and Arcangelo Corelli’s Concerto Grosso in D major was a good example. The concertino group of soloists, two violinists and cello, provided the virtuoso element over and above the ripieno accompaniment, shining in its six movements.

Lead violinist Pavlo Beznosiuk was joined by oboist Frank de Bruine in J.S.Bach’s Concerto in C minor (BWV.1060), reconstructed from a concerto for two harpsichords. Over pizzicato strings, the pair in delicately interwoven roles sang as one in the Adagio, easily a highlight of the evening.

Further soloistic displays were afforded in a Vivaldi bassoon concerto with Ursula Leveaux, making the usually jocular woodwind sound like the perfect instrument of mourning. Director Egarr himself performed and ornamented two Handel organ concertos. The first in B flat major (Op.4 No.6), more often heard as a harp concerto, had such a soft and muted quality that a hearing aid in the audience was triggered off, providing an inadvertent whistling solo line to the music.

Purcell’s lovely Chaconne was a brief showcase of the art of variations, and the concert closed with Bach’s First Orchestral Suite. Despite being regularly recorded, it is seldom heard compared with its two successors. After the opening French overture, it is a succession of fast dances, all of which were performed with great zest and vitality. Two and a half hours passed ever so pleasurably, and the AAM waved goodbye with Handel’s bustling Arrival of the Queen of Sheba.

Academy of Ancient Music and Sumi Jo / Singapore Arts Festival 2011 / Review

ACADEMY OF ANCIENT MUSIC & SUMI JO
Singapore Arts Festival 2011 / Esplanade Concert Hall / Monday (16 May 2011)

This review was published in The Straits Times on 18 May 2011 with the title "Sumi Jo lights up the stage".

Those who expected superstar soprano Sumi Jo to have sung more in this concert should have a double take on the title. This was to be a concert by the Academy of Ancient Music (AAM) with Jo as its guest artist, rather than the other way around. For the record, she sang just six songs in the main programme, in between three eye-catching changes of evening gowns.

The Korean “Queen of Coloratura” made a significant departure from her usual territory of Romantic showstoppers to delve into Baroque finery. As with great singers past and present, the results were still nothing short of spectacular. If one expected her to tone down her usual fire to fit the quaint and light sound of the period instrument movement, there was to be nothing of that sort.

Singers live for the joy of vibrato, and that was what she delivered without fear. In her opening aria, Vivaldi’s Nulla In Munda Pax, the bright and luminous glow which all have come to expect was immediately apparent. Ever careful with enunciation of words, she crafted every note with pristine clarity, and never in the expense of the seamless flow of the music.

For the faster tempo and higher reaches of Handel’s Tornami a vagheggiar (from Alcina), the figurative gloves came off with dazzling short runs and long held notes, all spiced up with tasteful ornamentations, and never mere display for its own sake. In Vivaldi’s Sposa, son disprezzata (Bajazet), the lament of a forsaken wife, coloured in gloomy tones, was one deeply felt.

William Carter’s theorbo (an ancient plucked instrument) and ensemble director Richard Egarr’s harpsichord was the only accompaniment in Purcell’s Music For The Moment (Oedipus), where the full unadorned glory of Jo’s artistry could be keenly appreciated. Not one to give up on fireworks completely, this was followed by Handel’s celebratory Let The Bright Seraphim (Samson), where her joyous issues were superbly echoed by David Blackadder on the natural valveless trumpet.

People came to admire Jo’s vocal acrobatics, and they were not to be disappointed with her closing number, Vivaldi’s Agitata, da due venti (Griselda). Translated as Shaken By Two Winds, it revelled in the fast and furious. Her athleticism in quick fire repeated notes was matched by animated responses to the orchestral playing with fits of head nodding and wide smiles.

She was having a whale of a time and the expected cheers were rewarded with two substantial encores, including the sublime Laschio lo pianga from Handel’s Rinaldo. In between all that, the ensemble led by Egarr from the harpsichord had also performed two Handel concerti grosso, a Handel sonata and sinfonia (The Arrival of the Queen of Sheba), a Purcell suite and an Albinoni concerto. 150 minutes had passed ever so quickly, but more on the AAM in tomorrow’s review.

Richard Egarr speaks at a post-concert dialogue.

SUMI JO Interview (2004)

Here is the interview I did with the Korean soprano Sumi Jo before her first Esplanade concert appearance with the Singapore Symhpony Orchestra in April 2004. This was published in the April 2004 issue of BraviSSimO!, the newsletter of the SSO.

(Click on image to enlarge)

We Remember VLADIMIR KRAINEV (1944-2011)

We mourn the loss of the great Russian pianist VLADIMIR KRAINEV (1944-2011) who passed away on 29 April 2011 in Hannover, Germany. He was the runner-up in the first ever Leeds International Piano Competition in 1962, and was joint winner of the 1970 Tchaikovsky International Piano Competition (sharing 1st prize with John Lill). A juror at the 1st Hong Kong International Piano Competition in 2005, he was a treasured member of the Hong Kong Chopin Society and The Joy of Music Festival family.

Below is a review I wrote in 2006 of a Krainev's performance at The Joy of Music Festival and a masterclass I attended. His musical generosity and wit will be missed.

Vladimir Krainev with the LCO Quartet / 15 December 2006 / Hong Kong Cultural Centre

The Joy of Music Festival in Hong Kong features members of the London Chamber Orchestra alongside some “star” pianists, big names of the keyboard firmament. The 2019-seat Cultural Centre Concert Hall is the home of the Hong Kong Philharmonic, but there could not have been more than 400 people attending this concert featuring Vladimir Krainev, the joint-winner of the 1970 International Tchaikovsky Piano Competition. What’s happening in Hong Kong? Where were all the music lovers? Were they admiring Disneyland fireworks or preoccupied with Christmas shopping?

Nevertheless, those who came to hear Krainev were not likely to be disappointed. He has a very secure technique, which allowed him to storm through the Two Rhapsodies Op.79 by Brahms without too much of a strain. I would consider him an almost ideal Brahms player – one who combines power with sensitivity, and feels the sweep of the music.His ability to paint the highly passionate music, and its alternating moments of highs and troughs, with many shades of colour, was admirable. The pianissimos were luminous, ringing like a clear bell, while the fortissimos roared like thunder. The latter however sounded congested and clangorous, not helped by the over-reverberant wood paneling that encased the hall and the all too small audience. But it was certainly not a bash-fest, and certainly not ugly.

And that was the full extent of his solo contributions for the evening.There was more Brahms in the Clarinet Trio in A minor Op.114, which comes from the same autumnal period (inspired by the same dedicatee) as his lovely Clarinet Sonatas Op.120. The London Chamber Orchestra’s Mark van der Wiel coaxed a warm and full-bodied tone from his clarinet, which blended in perfectly with Robert Max’s cello and Krainev’s sensitive pianism. There were no questions of balance whatsoever as Krainev was more than happy to be part of the ensemble rather than to dominate it.

The slow movement was probing, yet not plodding while Brahms’ subtle humour came through in the Andantino grazioso, serving as an interlude rather than merry scherzo. The Hungarian-flavoured finale however came across as rough and ready, reaching an apogee with a passage of missed notes from the pianist. Three out of four would not have been a poor score, but one only wished it had been perfect (who doesn’t?). Ultimately, it was the innate musicianship and sheer professionalism of the performers that saved the performance, which otherwise had an enjoyable outing.Presumably all the musicians had performed this work at least more than once in their lives, otherwise it would have not been committed in the festival programme. But one wonders how many rehearsals took place before this performance. My suspicion was that the performers only rehearsed it together while in Hong Kong.

Krainev was in his element in Shostakovich’s Piano Quintet in G minor Op.57. The opening G minor chord of the Prélude struck like a bolt of lightning, not unlike the chords of Verdi’s Dies Irae (Requiem), a portent of high tragedy. Clearly he had much to say about the Soviet-era work and here there was little doubt as to who was the boss. Serving as both soloist and accompanist, the piano heightened the tension in what amounted to Shostakovich’s sixteenth quartet. The Fugue suffered somewhat from first violinist Rosemary Furniss’ brittle entry, which played on high registers was more than occasionally intonation-challenged. However as a group, the ensemble maintained a very fine control throughout, building up to an impressive climax.

The madcap Scherzo that ensued teetered on the brink of sanity, with deliberately fluffed notes and violent pizzicatos flying in all directions, closing with multiple repeated chords that recalled the end of the First Piano Concerto. The alternating between farce and seriousness – a hallmark of Shostakovich – was well captured in this performance. The funereal procession of the Intermezzo (expertly helmed by Robert Max’s cello pizzicatos) found the perfect release in the faux-gaiety in the “easy music” of the finale with its major key tonality, played with the superb irony to be found in the deadpan faces.With each faux-triumphant step towards the close, yet more of Shostakovich’s inner tension and wry humour is revealed. Such is the journey that is taken by musicians with each performance of a work such as this (which also includes the 15 quartets and the Second Piano Trio).

ILYA RASHKOVSKIY ON HIS TEACHER VLADIMIR KRAINEV

At thirteen, Ilya Rashkovskiy (left) participated in the Vladimir Krainev Piano Competition in Kharkov, Ukraine, where he was awarded the First Prize. Vladimir Krainev spoke with him for the first time after an impressive opening round performance and after the finals, he was invited to study with Krainev in Hanover, which began in late 2000. This was the first time he had travelled to the West without his mother. For one and a half years, he stayed in Krainev’s household, tended by the great pianist’s mother! What is Krainev like as a teacher? “Very tough!” he gives a wry smile. He also added that all his students become very anxious on the days leading up to his lessons, and begin practising very hard.

VLADIMIR KRAINEV IN MASTERCLASS (Hong Kong, 2006)

I was fortunate to catch master pianist Vladimir Krainev in masterclass for an hour at a recital studio at Tom Lee Piano, Cameron Lane. A young Chinese pianist was showing his wares in the finale of Prokofiev’s Sixth Piano Sonata and Liszt’s First Piano Concerto. Krainev listens to long takes (an entire movement and more) before making his comments. And he does not mince words or pull punches, which are not lost in translation either. “You play too many wrong notes!” Ouch. “It is marked Vivace, but you play Allegretto, so it sounds very boring. Do you know what boring means?” Double ouch.

He is firm but not cruel. His remarks are pointed but are not meant to destroy. And there is something avuncular about his overall style of tutoring. He does demonstrate on the piano, but very briefly. Instead he prefers a pianist to reach his own conclusion on how a passage should go, rather than to slavishly imitate. Every pointer he gives is to be taken in the larger context of a piece and not merely at that point of instruction.

In the Liszt, he accompanies on a second piano, and quite perceptively so despite some trouble turning the pages of a new and untouched score. He later remarked that it was his first time playing the second part! Despite the morass of notes, he listens intently to the pianist’s notes and nuances. Capitalising on a passage marked dolcissimo, he asks the young man what it means. His translator says “beautifully” or “refined” (you mei in Putonghua), but nyet, Krainev gives this analogy instead. “Do you drink coffee or tea? Add seven spoonsful of sugar and you get dolcissimo. Very sweetly!” As they play that passage again, he emphasises, “Dolcissimo! Dolcissimo! Make me sound like Cassius Clay!” (Now you know which generation he comes from. The young man is unlikely to have heard of Muhammad Ali, let alone Cassius Clay.)

Finally, the young pianist misreads the timing of a note – repeatedly – in the second movement of the Liszt. Despite the master’s exhortations, he still does not quite get it. The wrong note has been hardwired into his system, and will need some serious debugging. They conclude the Liszt eventfully with the young man making several degrees of progress. However it is this remark from Krainev – a double-edge sword - that might make him rethink his work (and perhaps future profession), “Your Prokofiev. Very good!” Triple ouch.

The above articles were first published in The Flying Inkpot in 2006.

SSO Concert: Viennese Classics / Review

VIENNESE DELIGHTS / Singapore Symphony Orchestra
Conservatory Concert Hall / Saturday (14 May 2011)

This review was published in The Straits Times on 16 May 2011 with the title "Mirror image of symphonies".

It is always interesting to see and hear the Singapore Symphony Orchestra performing outside of the Esplanade. For the season’s last pair of subscription concerts, the orchestra moved to the smaller space of Yong Siew Toh Conservatory’s concert hall. The cosiness and friendly atmosphere of Victoria Concert Hall was relived, with the evening’s conductor Okko Kamu spotted mingling with concert-goers in the foyer before the concert and during the interval.

Chamber music and performances with smaller forces are better served in this hall, which explained the programme from the First Viennese School. The coupling of symphonies by Haydn and Beethoven, juxtaposing master and student, was a totally euphonious one, the symmetry of which became apparent when the orchestra sounded the first chord.

How late Haydn had influenced early Beethoven could be felt in the former’s Symphony No.102 in B flat major, opening the concert. The now-familiar schema of slow and serious introduction giving way to sheer energy and vivacity came from the older composer. The orchestra responded with silvery sheen from the strings and absolute precision despite the dizzying velocity.

The slow movement exuded stately beauty, and while the 3rd movement’s Minuet could have done with more lightness, the jesting and quicksilver wit of the finale bowled one over. While Haydn remains music’s most underrated soul, the same could not be said of Beethoven. His Second Symphony in D major saw almost a repeat of Haydn’s mastery of form, but the amplified by younger composer’s irrepressible and surging spirit.

Yet it was not all boom and bluster, as the orchestra coaxed some of the concert’s most lovely moments in the sublime Larghetto. Time stood still before Kamu led an all-out assault in the final movements, more than providing clues of Beethoven’s future greatness in works like his Eroica Symphony.

In between the two mirror-imaged symphonies was Mozart’s relatively early Piano Concerto No.13 in C major with the supremely musical British pianist Steven Osborne (above). His was a limpid and idiomatic reading, which confluent with Mozart’s own prescription “flowed like oil” beneath its martial pretensions. He was also unafraid to exert himself when it mattered.

From arch simplicity in the slow movement to cheerful banter alternating with reflective melancholy in the finale, the contrasts he provided made the music come alive. Expect more delights when he next returns.