More Lush Liszt from the Young Artist Series
Diego Suarez
THE PROPER CELEBRATION of Franz Liszt’s bicentennial year has not been lost on Enrique Graf and his Young Artist Series. Tuesday’s concert set quite a high bar, but doing justice to this prolific composer’s immense body of work requires much more. And so, another full program dedicated solely to Liszt’s music provided a stupendous exclamation point to the matter at hand, bringing sweet union to technical prowess and raw emotion.
Diego Suarez opened our program with four of the Transcendental Études, linking this program to Tuesday’s with a hefty appreciation of the wild Romantic ride of Irwin Jiang’s reading of the Dante Sonata. Fittingly enough, Diego opened with the first of these devilish études. The “Preludio” consists of a short (less than one minute) blast of arpeggios and trills filled with brash intent. Diego captured that energy with only the slightest hint of imbalance. Ah, but throwing one’s balance off is the only way one can begin a transcendental journey…
Irwin Jiang
Next came one of the true virtuoso calling cards of piano literature, No. 4 “Mazeppa.” Our young pianist found his balance right from the start, steeling us for the mad gallop ahead. The Ukrainian steppe flew by in an unhinged and relentless blur corralled only by Diego’s unerring melodic sense. His aggressive attack served this well until the melody moved down to the left hand, where a slightly lighter touch might have provided a moment of wider landscapes amidst this works intense close-up shots of frenzy. Mazeppa did however find his coronation, and Diego crowned him well.
No. 6 “Vision” opened quietly, Diego capturing its mysterious bass rumble with aplomb, and effortlessly transitioning to the main theme. Here is that lighter attack! With arpeggios flowing light as a feather, our pianist brought the melody front and center in a cascade of beauty. Wonderful!
Diego’s portion of the program ended with No. 10 Allegro agitato molto. This étude plays to his strengths, requiring a pianist to hold on to its plaintive melody for dear life while bouncing it from hand to hand… oh, and also stacking one’s hands. Diego quickly built its raucous but sturdy structure with confidence and more than just a hint of pure unrestrained joy.
Micah McLaurin
Irwin Jiang took the stage next, with La Campanella from the Grand Paganini Études. From its staccato opening to the explosion of its end, Irwin imbued this dark ride with such subtle nuance one could almost see the ghost of Marie d’Agoult leaning wistfully against the keyboard.
And then, a very grand finale. Micah McLaurin took the stage for the Concerto No. 2 in A Major with CofC alum Ciro Foderé providing the “orchestra” on a second piano. A wickedly ingenious creature of thematic transformation, this one movement concerto opens with sorrowful gentleness highlighting both pianists deft touch. As we moved further and even further afield, that deftness approached pure empathy. Micah’s sheer musicality crafted molten passion, only to be answered in kind by Ciro. During the march section which brings us home, this empathy began to flow with playful joy throughout the hall, answering “Be embraced, ye millions!” with “Because we are one!”
Happy birthday indeed, Franz.
