Tuesday, 2 December 2008

Gig-a-Blog™ (Nadia Giliova, St Anne & St Agnes)

Friday, 27 June 2008

Nadia Giliova, piano

The last almost-rescuable Gig-a-Blog™ from Back Then™. Sorry about the stupid gaps: mea culpa, etc. Right, off we go:

Blake Variations on a Theme of Bartók Op. 3

Interesting, spiky Bartók corners. I'd have loved some programme notes and I'd love to hear this again.

Another Blake work – sadly not noted at the time, so lost. Bother.

Schumann - Carnival of Vienna, Op. 26

  1. Allegro - grand, inspiring, goes with a real swing. Huge sound, incredible technical assurance.
  2. Romanze - gorgeous, mysterious, full of longing. I rather like the way this movement just sets out its stall and goes away - you don't get three hours of pleading.
  3. Scherzino - light, jollier moments
  4. Intermezzo - flowing lovely arpeggiation. And hence a full satisfying texture with melody being brought forward without being in your face.
  5. Finale - I loved this - busy, broad, singing at times and positively symphonic at others. This is a great movement and hearing it played by a great pianist like Giliova is a fantastic privilege.

Rachmaninov Two Preludes Op. 23

  1. Restful, calm, possibly too calm for me right now, but very beautiful.
  2. Ah - fireworks! That's more like it. Worth two coffees at least. Extremely exciting, and I need to get close enough to check whether she's actually got fourteen fingers or something: she is currently playing more notes than I can process. Fabulous.

So there you go. A jolly fine concert, and her notes (arf) really somewhat better than mine. Aha.

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