August 5, 2000

www.TheDailyCamera.com

Rachmaninoff deserves popularity

By Sabine Kortals

For the Camera

"Music is the expression of the movement of the waters, the play of curves described by changing breezes." — Claude Debussy.

The "play of curves" and the enduring popularity of Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 2 in g, Op. 16 is hardly mysterious. And on Thursday night, the Colorado Music Festival and guest pianist Yuri Rozum delivered a supremely thoughtful performance of the melodious and beloved work.

Under the direction of guest conductor Michael Christie, 26, the first of the concerto's captivating melodies is played by the strings following a brief introduction of pensive piano chords. (The piano on stage for this week's Thursday and Friday concerts is an Italian Fazioli, made of spruce wood from the Fiemme Valley. One of only two in America today, this instrument of choice for the exceedingly talented pianist is the longest piano in the world, measuring in at over 10 feet.)

Christie and Rozum were beautifully in synch in their interpretation of the composer's unique Russian soulfulness. The complementary contrast between the first theme and the romantic tenderness of the second theme was as rousing as any version I've ever heard.

The impassioned collective musicianship of the fine orchestra, as directed by the last of four conductors vying for maestro Giora Bernstein's position, was a perfect counterpart to Rozum's incontestable brilliance at the keyboard. In the second movement, the orchestra musicians successfully relayed a sense of painful romantic yearning and passion gone unfulfilled; but it was Rozum's rock solid and serious musicianship that carried over into a dazzling and memorable third movement under Christie's baton. The result was a well-deserved standing ovation by a full house. (...)