WHILE MY GUITAR GENTLY....SINGS

Colin Davin, Elad Kabilio, and Larisa Martinez

You may observe that in the photo above Mr. Kabilio is blurry whilst Mr. Davin and Ms. Martinez appear rather sharp. The reason is that we do not have a fast enough lens on our iPhone and Mr. Kabilio never stops moving! Indeed this young man is always on the move. Gifted not only as a cellist but as an educator and a producer, the kinetic Mr. K. started Music Talks about six years ago and we have watched his audience growing until they outgrew their venue. Their new home is Interface, a spacious loft-like space on W. 30th St. Nothing pleases us more than seeing a Sold Out sign in connection with classical music.

In case you hadn't noticed, there is a quiet revolution going on the classical music world, one in which young artists are starting their own companies and presenting music in unusual venues in order to attract new young audience members. People who are reluctant to buy costly tickets to concert halls or invest huge amounts of money in subscriptions can more readily be tempted to attend a more casual venue for a modest entrance fee.

An advantage of this sea change is that unusual and highly specialized programs can be presented.  We are indeed in an era of specialization of taste.

Mr. K. certainly has his finger on the pulse of his audience and plays them as adroitly as he plays his cello, and that's saying a lot. He did not play the cello last night at Interface but rather put on his educator's cap and shared his ebullient enthusiasm with the comfortably seated audience.  The 90 minutes flew by and if you didn't leave with your feelings fulfilled and your brain stimulated, there is something wrong with you.

The subject of the evening was "Guitar Stories: Spain" and Mr. K. brought together two amazing artists to give us an evening as tasty as tapas. Celebrated guitarist Colin Davin immersed himself in the sounds of Iberia which Mr. K. explained is really many countries in one, revealing multiple influences from its neighbors. If the tour was too brief, then we travelers can explore further on our own.

Isaac Albeniz composed at the end of the 19th c. and, although he composed his Op. 232 for the piano, most people recognize it from its guitar transcriptions, probably most successfully accomplished by Andres Segovia. The key has been transcribed from G minor to E minor. The introduction, originally intended as a Preludio to a suite entitled Chants d'Espagne, was retitled by the publisher as "Asturias". However, to our ears, it is most definitely Andalusian in spirit.  Indeed we recognize one of the rhythms as a buleria.

Mr. Davin began pianissimo and built to an exciting intensity that brought the vigorous foot stamping of flamenco to mind. The insistent thematic repetition made it impossible to forget, and as the theme ascended the scale the excitement grew, with a more tranquil middle section providing a respite.

The fifth section of the work is entitled "Cordoba" and was given a soulful introduction. We particularly liked the quiet chorale-like section.

Federico Mompou, a Catalonian, did write for guitar and we heard selections from Suite Compostelana, commissioned by Segovia himself. Santiago de Compostela, the capitol of Galicia, is the culmination of a famous Christian pilgrimage in Northwest Spain. The "Preludio" shows the influence of nearby France whereas "Muineira" with its duple meter shows the Celtic influence on the area. Yes, the guitar can sound like bagpipes and yes, we did feel like dancing!

Poor Antonio Jose, executed at 34 during the Spanish Civil War, produced some fine music before he died.  His Sonata for Guitar has its organizational foot in Neoclassicism but its emotional foot (or heart, as it were) in Impressionism. He paid tribute to his teacher Maurice Ravel in "Pavana Triste" which had a limping rhythm reminding one of sobs. Mr. Davin's fingerwork in the Finale was rapid fire.

The culmination of the evening was Manuel de Falla's Siete Canciones Populares Espanolas, a piece that was written for soprano and piano. Although that is the way we are accustomed to hearing it, we loved the way it sounded on the guitar which was an equal partner to the lovely Larisa Martinez' luscious soprano. Her exquisite tone and clear diction conveyed the meaning of the text with Mr. Davin's guitar supplying the witty subtext. The songs are concise and pungent with ample opportunity to change mood by color and texture.

Our only quibble was that the seven songs were not performed as a unit, as they are meant to be. The cycle was interrupted twice for Mr. K. to explain the songs to the audience, which broke the mood. We believe this was a well-intentioned attempt to educate the audience and we do understand that people's attention spans are growing shorter by the megabyte, but the cycle begs to be heard in one piece!

(c) meche kroop

MUSIC TALKS

Elad Kabilio, Grace Ho, Larisa Martinez, Oded Hadar, and Caleb van der Swaagh

 

 

 

We escaped from the crowds and chaos of Cyber Monday to spend a pleasant hour with some marvelous musicians.  We learned.  We listened.  We relaxed.  We arrived stressed out and we left feeling soothed. We felt entertained as well as educated.

MUSIC TALKS has a mission: to bring music to an intimate and informal setting, to break down the barriers between musicians and audience, to expose audiences to chamber music in small doses. The experience would be a perfect one to introduce someone to the joys of classical music; it does not, however, insult the intelligence of those of us who already love music.

For example, as lovers of 19th c. vocal music and opera, there is a great deal about instrumental music we don't know and a great deal of pre-Classical music that we haven't appreciated. Without delivering an entire dissertation, cellist Elad Kabilio introduced the audience to J.S. Bach's Die Kunst der Fuge, composed toward the end of Bach's life.

We never really understood what a fugue was but Mr. Kabilio easily explained how it differs from a canon and proceeded to illustrate--the subject was played by one cello, the slight variation played by a second one (the variation for harmonic purposes), and the original subject entering the scene played by a third cello.

Apparently Bach worked out this puzzle meticulously without ever indicating for which instruments  it was intended.  To our ears, it sounded just right with four cellos!  Mathematics became music and pleased our ears as the strands were woven together into an harmonious whole.

Even more enjoyable was Bach's Aria from Pastorale in F Major which was surprisingly lyrical.

The tangos of Spanish composer Isaac Albeniz (turn of the 20th c.) and Argentinean composer Astor Piazzolla (mid-20th c.), whose works we have only heard on the bandoneon, were performed as well, arranged for four cellos. In "Mocosita" there was plenty of legato bowing and staccato plucking. We felt like getting up to dance.

But the highlight of the concert was a second hearing of the"Aria" and "Dansa" from Heitor Villa Lobos' Bachianas Brasileras No. 5 sung by soprano Larisa Martinez and arranged for four cellos by Mr. Kabilio. (Villa Lobos wrote this tribute to Bach for 8 cellos.) The program was called Bach in Brazil and it was interesting to hear the echoes of Bach in Villa Lobos' composition.

We had so greatly enjoyed Ms. Martinez' performance of this work two weeks ago that we were most eager for her repeat performance. We are partial to the Cantilena sung on the open vowel "ah". No words were needed to convey the depth of feeling.

For the month of December we have decided to highlight the possibilities of supporting every small company we write about so that our readers can find something better to do with their Xmas funds than buying someone an ugly sweater.  Better to give the money to a worthwhile enterprise and make your loved ones happy with a hug!  So here is the URL...www.Music-Talks.com. Please give!

(c) meche kroop

OLE!

Sharon Isbin and Isabel Leonard

Last night at Zankel Hall, two world-renowned artists graced the stage and demonstrated all the magic of Spanish music.  If you came for emotion, you got it.  If you came for gorgeous sound, you got it.  If you came to feel the multi-cultural aspect of music from Spain, you got it.  If you came for glamour, you got it. 

As we have pointed out, Spain is geographically part of Europe. Almost. Sharing a border with the south of France, it juts out into the Atlantic, almost kissing Morocco. Spain is culturally its own, with strong influences from N. Africa dating back to the period of Moorish domination.

Much of the music coming out of Spain in the 19th and 20th c. bears echoes of flamenco.  It is surprising but much of the music we associate with guitar was originally written for the piano.

We have often written about zarzuela, the Spanish version of operetta, but last night's recital contained no arias, only art songs written by Spain's best composers. The recital was unique in that there was no collaborative piano, rather a collaborative guitar played by the world class guitarist Sharon Isbin who seemed to breathe in tandem with Ms. Leonard and whose solos astonished us with their virtuosity.

Nothing astonishes us about Isabel Leonard whose spectacular mezzo-soprano sheds magic on whatever she chooses to sing. We have often written about the rich overtones of her voice which lend it a most particular texture. Her stage presence is stunning but accessible and her phrasing always makes artistic sense.

She has a long intense involvement with Spanish music. Let us begin at the end when Ms. Leonard finally discarded the music stand which had impaired our connection for most of the evening.  More on that later.

Manuel de Falla wrote his Siete canciónes populares españolas in the early 20th c.  Ms. Leonard really connected with the audience and used her innate sense of drama to wring every ounce of color and change of mood from the seven songs. We particularly enjoyed the playful "Jota" in which Ms. Leonard conveyed the secret passion of the young lover; Ms. Isbin's guitar contributed the texture.

The intense "Polo" was so deeply felt that we experienced a pain in our very own heart. That's what a song should do for us!

In the remainder of the program, Ms. Leonard used a music stand, even for music which we know she knows well. Judging by the applause which interrupted every set after each and every song, the rest of the audience didn't care.  But we did.

This is our own personal bugaboo. When a singer breaks contact to look down or to turn the page, we feel the fine thread of attachment snap and we then retreat to reading the translation, instead of feeling the connection. The singer may very well be totally involved with the material but not with the audience.  We want to feel what they feel about the song and we lose it.

This deficit was experienced all through the marvelous and varied program. We love Federico Garcia Lorca's Canciónes españolas antiguas, settings of folk songs, strangely presented in two sets separated by two guitar solos. Ms. Leonard is a gifted storyteller and engaged the audience with her easy natural introductions. We particularly enjoyed "Romance de Don Boyso" and "Los mozos de Monléon" which allowed the artist room for a dramatic reading over the voice of the guitar.

Two selections from Xavier Montsalvatge's Canciónes negras, arranged by Ms. Isbin, were performed, of which our favorite was the tender lullaby "Canción de cuna para dormir a un negrito" which our companion found to be racist. (Well, yes, but the De Falla songs are sexist--both products of their time and place and, in our opinion, beyond criticism).

A special treat was a composition by Joaquín Rodrigo. We have long loved his 1939 Concierto de Aranjuez but never knew that he extracted the Adagio and that his wife wrote text for it, a nostalgic piece of poetry in French. Victoria Kamhi was a Sephardic Jew, born in Turkey, and a pianist who gave up her career to assist her blind husband.  So, we don't know why it is in French but we loved Ms. Leonard's French diction.

A contemporary work by the American composer Richard Danielpour was commissioned by Carnegie Hall and saw its première on the program as well. The text is based on the poetry of Rumi, the 13th c. poet whose life story is filled with fascinating detail.

Writing in what was then the Persian Empire, presumably in Farsi, the poet wrote of love and spirituality. Raficq Abdulla's translation, while considered one of the finest, did nothing for us. Perhaps they are more interpretations than translations.  Perhaps they have lost much in the translation.

"Listen" seemed to be shoehorned into rhymed couplets and came across as doggerel which did not scan at all. Although we loved the music as played by Ms. Isbin, it seemed to us that it missed the eroticism of the second two selections--"This Night of Love" and "Your Beauty".

We did find the work far more listenable than most contemporary music, and Ms. Leonard's English diction lacked for nothing. The most musical part was when she sang on the syllable "La"; it probably would have sounded a lot better in Farsi! It is our opinion that before setting a text, a composer should think about whether the text needs music to enhance it!

We will not close without casting compliments on Ms. Isbin. We heard two late 19th c. masterpieces--Enrique Granados' "Andaluza" from his 12 danzas españolas and Isaac Albeniz' Asturias, arranged by Andres Segovia--written originally for piano. Ms. Isbin's powerfully rasqueadas instilled the pieces with flamenco flavor.

The familiar melodies are marked by strong bass notes with a fine filigree. We definitely were feeling the "gypsy soul" and recognized the guitarist as an artist who communicates what she herself is feeling. Her playing involved subtle changes of dynamics and technical mastery of the highest order.  In Francisco Tárrega's Recuerdos de la Alhambra, the tremolo in the right hand called forth the vision of the plashing fountains.

As encore, we heard the Mexican composer Agustín Lara's 1932 "Granada" which brought the audience to their collective feet. We felt magnificently entertained.

We cannot end without returning to our comment about glamour. If an artist mentions her designer we feel called upon to comment. Austin Scarlett provided one hit and one miss.  The beautiful Ms. Leonard sported a red strapless gown that spilled into a pool on the floor; it was breathtaking. The lovely Ms. Isbin had a gown that appeared matronly, unbecoming, and uncomfortable.

(c) meche kroop

SOARING VOICES, SOARING VAULTS

David Galvez and Amaya Arberas

The Museum of the City of New York has mounted a superlative installation of the works of Rafael Guastavino, the Valencian architect responsible for so many of New York City's tiled arches.  The Consulate General of Spain in New York generously sponsored a musical evening highlighting musical works from the same period--late 19th c.

We could think of no finer artists to convey the parallels between music and architecture than soprano superstar Amaya Arberas (previously reviewed and found in our search bar) and guitar virtuoso David Galvez (also reviewed previously, also found by entering his name in the search bar).

We do not hear enough classical Spanish music here in New York which strikes us as a sad state of affairs. The melodic music bears both restraint and passion in delightful balance and the language itself is highly singable with vowels similar to those of the Italian language.  If we were given a single wish for the opera scene in NYC, it would be to have a company present zarzuelas and Spanish art songs.

Ms. Arberas has a brilliant soprano with a finely grained vibrato and a sparkling resonance.  One rarely gets to hear these art songs performed by a native Castilian and there were many moments that produced goosebumps and the teary eyes that come from witnessing beauty, be it musical, painterly or sculptural.

The two songs on the program that were familiar to us were Manuel de Falla's "El Paño Moruno" in which Ms. Arberas slyly conveyed the song's symbolic subtext and Fernando Obradors' "Del Cabello Mas Sutil" in which the tenderness brought tears to our eyes.  A very dramatic piece from Ruperto Chapi's zarzuela , Las Hijas del Zebedeo, absolutely blew us away.

Songs by Fernando Sor and Eduardo Toldrá rounded out the vocal part of the program and the beautiful "Cantares" by Joaquin Turina gave Ms. Arberas an opportunity to show another aspect of her artistry in the melismatic passages.

The vocal selections were stunningly accompanied by Mr. Galvez, a special treat to our ears, especially Miguel Llobet's "El Testament d'Amelia", a barcarolle like song in 3/4 time.  Mr. Galvez had several opportunities to play solos as well.  We have mainly been exposed to the guitar in works of the Baroque period and we realize how greatly we prefer works of the Late Romantic period. 

In Isaac Albeniz' "Asturias" we admired the deft rasqueados of the right hand.  In Sor's "Variaciones de Mozart" we appreciated the subtle dynamic and rhythmic variety and the insistent phrase which we cannot get out of our ears, nor would we wish to do so.  The moving "Recuerdos de la Alhambra" was yet another favorite.

As encores, Ms. Arberas switched to the Italian language, performing two lovely songs by Vicente Martin y Soler--"La Costanza" and "Volubile".  They were as lovely as the Spanish songs and brought the audience to their collective feet.

Sadly, the recital is over but the Guastavino exhibit can be seen until September 7.  There is a video installation on display in "Palaces for the People".  Or you could visit all the places in NYC to which the famous architect contributed his arched tile ceilings.  Or you could do both!

© meche kroop