CD Reviews (The Straits Times / March 2016)

IVO POGORELICH

Complete Recordings

Deutsche Grammophon 479 4350 (14CDs) / ****

It has been 36 years since the Belgrade-born pianist Ivo Pogorelich burst onto the scene after being eliminated in the semi-finals of the 1980 Chopin International Piano Competition. 

Martha Argerich's famous walkout from the jury sealed his notoriety, which was further fuelled by his unconventional attire and provocative interpretations. He made 14 albums for the German yellow label from 1981 to 1995, all of which have been reissued here. A given with uncommon and unpredictable genius, his playing ranged from transcendental to outright perversity.

Begin with his “brave new world” debut all-Chopin recital, which includes a brisk, angular and unsentimental Second Sonata “Funeral March”. A must-listen is his Ravel Gaspard de la nuit, one of the best versions ever committed to disc, coupled with a blistering account of Prokofiev's Sixth Sonata, and excitable takes on Bach’s Second and Third English Suites. 

The downsides include an auto mechanic's view of Beethoven's last Sonata Op.111, a bloated Mussorgsky Pictures at an Exhibition, and a constipated Brahms recital. Also, how could anyone possibly make Ravel's Valses nobles et sentimentales sound this ponderous? In between there are illuminating views of Scarlatti, Haydn and more Chopin, which sound quirky at first but grows on one's further listening. Never boring for a second, here is an original from first to last.

PETER AND THE WOLF IN HOLLYWOOD

ALICE COOPER (Narrator)

National Youth Orchestra of Germany

Alexander Shelley (Conductor)

Deutsche Grammophon 479 4888 / ****1/2

In an effort to update Sergei Prokofiev's 1930s children's musical adventure to the present day, the American creative team of Giants Are Small have crafted a prequel set in Los Angeles of the 21^st century. Peter is an orphaned Russian boy who moves to America to live with his hippie grandfather who is a gardener in a once-famous actor's Beverly Hills mansion. A wolf escapes from the zoo, gobbles down a school of ducks and sets Peter on his big game hunt.

The prequel takes up half the disc and includes a redundant episode where Peter builds a giant robot for his quest which breaks down anyway. It contains no new music, instead cleverly splicing together music by Wagner, Elgar, Zemlinsky, Satie and others before seguing into Prokofiev's iconic score.

The narrator is rock icon Alice Cooper (of heavy metal Alice Cooper Band fame), who is engaging in an easy, avuncular manner, regularly dropping words like “dude” and “cool”. The hunters of the original story are replaced by camera-toting paparazzi, and there are also American-styled radio news commentaries. 

The young German orchestra is excellent and this version can be safely recommended for children's enjoyment wherever one comes from. 

CARNIVAL OF THE ANIMALS / PETER AND THE WOLF / Kamchatka Theatre Company and Singapore Festival Orchestra / Review

CARNIVAL OF THE ANIMALS
PETER & THE WOLF
Kamchatka Theatre Company
Singapore Festival Orchestra
Esplanade Concert Hall
Friday (21 May 2010)

This review was published in The Straits Times on 24 May 2010.

(The "sacking" of Esplanade Concert Hall, as reported earlier, was part of this act... just in case you were wondering.)

It looked like a scene from Bangkok today. Graffiti on the walls, litter strewn on every inch, and concertgoers were cordoned off, barred from entering the hall. A minivan then gatecrashed the foyer. Instead of riot police, it was 16 members of Spain’s Kamchatka Theatre Company, an outfit more in league with the Keystone Cops.

Music was on the plate, but not before a prolonged foreplay of acrobatics, juggling and visual comedy to set the mood. This reviewer was literally carried away, fireman-lifted by one of the troupe and unceremoniously dumped onto the stage (some say a fate befitting all critics).

Director Adrian Schvarzstein, perfect for the part with his brow-beaten demeanor, engaged and teased. When former Deputy Prime Minister Dr Tony Tan left his seat with grandchild in tow, probably to use the conveniences, he quipped, “You are going to do pee pee now?” Prostate problem or otherwise, the concert resumed after the duo returned.

The first part was a choreographed Carnival of the Animals by Camille Saint-Saens, with the twin sister act of pianists Low Shao Ying and Shao Suan, both of whom were royally carried to their stools. But first, a conductor had to be found. The chubby boy in the second row tried his luck and was ejected. Then a pretty senorita emerged from the audience, “I’ve got conducting lessons!” she pleaded. The orchestra seemed to like her looks, and so maestra Virginia Martinez raised her baton.

SFO cellist Elizabeth Tan does her best Jackie du Pré impression.

Placards with big bold titles were flashed in each of the 14 movements. The street actors did their spiels, which included Mister Bean and Monty Pythonesque routines, culminating with The Swan, a gravity-defying ballet on drapes slung high above the stage.

“The second part is the part after the first part,” drolly declared Schvarzstein. Without an intermission, the Singapore Festival Orchestra accompanied Suzie Templeton’s 2006 animated film Peter & the Wolf. Radically different from previous incarnations, there was a gritty edge to the production, which swung between genuine tension and humour, and an eco-conscious twist at the end. There was no need for narration, as the story told itself with split second synchronisation from the musicians playing Prokofiev’s familiar score.

More anarchic than Babies Proms and more riotous than a Taiwanese parliamentary session, the 2010 Singapore Arts Festival has midwifed a winning act of uncommon pedigree.

Everybody loves the Singapore Festival Orchestra!

Take a bow, Kamchatka!