5 February 2003
“Moskovskaya Pravda”, Russia
An elderly usher at the
Tchaikovsky Hall from whom I was buying a programme seemed to have felt for me
and quietly, as if sharing a secret, said, “It’s going to be a wonderful, wonderful
recital. I listened to the rehearsal during the day.” For the umpteenth time I
had proof that this category of cultural workers have got a fine taste and
accurate judgement. Unfortunately I can’t say the same about myself. But I hope
my musical culture is sufficient to roughly divide musicians into four
categories. That is to differentiate between good and bad playing, good and
brilliant, brilliant and divine.
Pianist
Yuri Rozum who played a solo recital that night belongs to the fourth category.
According to my classification.
The programme consisted solely of Chopin’s music,
which is especially close to Rozum. For example, a respected American music
critic Fred Crafts wrote, “Rozum seemed at one with Chopin (...) Rozum plays
Chopin the way Chopin would have liked it played - with grace, ease,
intelligence, delight, song and dance.” I can’t say that I am blessed with the
knowledge of what Chopin would have liked, but I can’t but agree with
everything else. The only thing I would like to add is how Rozum does NOT play.
There is no languor (which is usually expressed by way of such little
“breaths”) and there is no wrath (usually “revolutionary”). Yes, there is
burning passion there at times, but there is no wrath. Fortunately.
For
that evening Rozum had chosen a set of most difficult works. Not only all four
ballads (they are never or almost never played in one recital), but also four
waltzes, four etudes, barcarole and polonaise. Later Yuri confessed that he had
probably gone a bit too far. Not that the programme was not within his
capabilities. He just had not taken into account his own “weakness” for playing
as many encores as the audience would demand. It was not the first time that I
witnessed the second half of his recital to double in time. And this time again
the full house got as much as they asked for, taking mercy on the pianist only
after he announced before Scriabin’s prelude, “For three hands”.
And you
know what, I haven’t seen for a long time a male musician getting so many
flowers. And the very first bouquet was given to him by Ludmila Zykina. It was
very touching, especially if one knows that Yuri is like a son to her…
During
this visit to Moscow Rozum (by the way he is soloist of the Moscow
Philharmonia) played two Philharmonic concerts. A week and a day later he
played Tchaikovsky’s 1st Piano Concerto with the Radio and
Television Symphony Orchestra. An interesting detail could be noticed on the
announcing poster: conductor – Scott Speck (USA). To us he was unknown. So even
a short introduction would be useful. I will do it with the help of my good
friend Irina Thomas.
Scott Speck has Russian roots – his great
grandfather came to the United States from Russia at the beginning of the last
century. He is interested in Russian culture and is learning Russian. His
favourite composer is Tchaikovsky (in the second half of that concert the
orchestra under his baton performed the 5th Symphony). He is principal
conductor of the Mobile Symphony Orchestra (Alabama), conducts the orchestra of
San Francisco Ballet and West Shore Orchestra of Michigan. He has conducted at
such prestigious venues as the Paris Opera House, London's Royal Opera House at
Covent Garden, Washington's Kennedy Centre. Now he is at the Tchaikovsky Hall.
Rozum says about Speck, “Scott has a rare combination - even for a very high
class conductor - of sensitive interest in the interpretation of the soloist
and his own extraordinary musical thinking.” The first meeting between Yuri and
Scott happened at a very difficult time for America – they were to open a new
concert season in Alabama a few days after the tragic events of September the
11th. All air traffic between the United States and the rest of the
world was suspended, but Yuri made it having left Europe by one of the first
recommenced flights. Rachmaninov’s music
– they played the 2nd Piano concerto – sounded as a
life-affirming hymn for American people who united in the face of the terrible
tragedy. (Last Monday the concert also started with a minute of silence in the
memory of the astronauts of “Columbia”…) By the way during the very first
rehearsal the conductor said to the pianist, “We are here not just to accompany
you, we would like to learn to play Rachmaninov according to the Russian
musical tradition.”
There was
another more down to earth reason why Rozum invited Speck to conduct in Moscow.
Without going into detail: it is not for the fist time that they are trying to
get rid of the Radio and Television Symphony Orchestra (Artistic Director
Anatoly Nemudrov, Principal Conductor Pavel Sorokin). As the Artistic Director
has got a firm contract for a concert tour of the United States, he could have
just waited for the trip without too much trouble. But the management of Moscow
Philharmonia asked him not to cancel announced subscription concerts, which the
orchestra performed for many years with unfailing success with the public. So
Rozum offered to invite his friend with whom he played before and who could
have sponsored a concert in Russia…
Moscow
public, who as we know are quite sophisticated as far as music understanding is
concerned and have heard many wonderful interpretations of the 1st
Concerto and the 5th Symphony, gave the American conductor a great
welcome and were very generous with long and enthusiastic applause. Not because
it was his Moscow debut, but because it was well-deserved and fair.
I will
try to explain this fairness. Scott Speck interpreted Tchaikovsky’s music with
the sensuousness that this music is filled with. And his sure, free and expressive
conducting style does not leave the orchestra any other choice than the choice
made by the conductor. It was obvious that following the conductor
implicitly the musicians enjoyed their own music making. And another
small but illustrative detail, which did not go unnoticed by the audience:
Speck never opened the score of the symphony in front of him….
Coming
back to Rozum’s solo recital, I would like to share with you something I have
noticed. In the past (thirty, twenty, ten years ago) solo recitals were held
quite often at the best Moscow halls – The Grand Hall of the Conservatoire and
the Tchaikovsky Hall. Pianists, violinists, organists, singers performed
there…And what about now? It’s not just that there are fewer solo recitals,
their number reduced by many times! Not a long time ago I asked a famous
Conservatoire professor Sergey Dorensky about the reason for this. Confirming
that this tendency exists he could not give me a single reason which would make
sense.
And
reasons that do not make any sense – plenty! One can argue for instance that
big halls are for big groups – orchestras and choirs, whereas soloists should
perform in smaller chamber halls. Certain bureaucrats of the culture are trying
to say that solo recitals do not collect the full box office in big halls. But
solo recitals of Yuri Rozum at the Tchaikovsky Hall in Triumphalnaya Square and
the same week recitals of Nikolai Lugansky and Konstantin Lifshiz at the Grand
Hall in Bolshaya Nikitskaya gathered full houses of delighted public. The
reason is that these soloists were of the divine category. But this is
something we are still rich in like no one else. And then we are wondering, why
we have musical brain and hands drain.
But
this is another topic and I am sure “MP” will come back to it.