Evgeny Kissin and Sir Andrew Davis at the Roy Thomson
Hall Reviewed by Stanley Fefferman - 18 May 2012
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Armed With the Classics, and Reaching for
More Evgeny Kissin Plays Barber's Sonata at Carnegie Hall
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Evgeny Kissin, a Lion at the Piano 18th April 2012
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Kissin plays to sold-out crowd at New World Center By David Fleshler :: 16/04/12
Evgeny Kissin’s
restrained performance of the first movement of Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata gave little hint of the recital that was
to follow.
The Russian virtuoso’s performance Sunday afternoon at New World Center in Miami Beach marked
the second and final event of concert promoter Judy Drucker’s reincarnated recital series, and it ended it in a blaze
of keyboard fireworks, with multiple standing ovations and three encores.
Playing to a sold-out crowd, Kissin opened
with Beethoven’s famous sonata, performing the first movement with a restraint that was almost staid. But this had the
effect of allowing the power of the music to emerge through Beethoven’s hypnotically repeated rhythms, rather than through
any overt emoting on the performer’s part. The next movement was light, elegant and polite. It was in the last movement
that Kissin let loose, ripping through the rapid triplets that open the movement like the virtuoso he is, displaying turn-on-a-dime
dexterity in dynamic shifts and drawing grandiose sounds from the piano at the end.
Kissin is one of those pianists
who seems most comfortable at high speed, and the rest of the recital gave him ample opportunity. Samuel Barber’s Piano
Sonata was made for Kissin’s musical sensibilities. First performed by Vladimir Horowitz in 1950, the sonata makes huge
demands on the performer’s technique.
Kissin plunged in confidently, putting across the bouncy first movement
with unrestrained exuberance and humor, but also playing with great delicacy when needed, as in the light, quick treble section
in the second movement. He drew great dramatic tension from the Adagio. And not only did the fiercely difficult counterpoint
of the last movement seem to give him no trouble, it inspired him to a headlong, hard-driving performance that ended with
a flourish and generated a mid-recital standing ovation.
Kissin has been known as a Chopin specialist for his entire
career, having made his first recording at the age of 12 of the composer’s two piano concertos. He gave a gentle, songlike
account of Chopin’s Nocturne in A-Flat Major. And then he played a highly personal performance of the composer’s
Sonata No. 3, showing a preference for rhythmic liberties and extremes of tempo. The first movement he took slowly, taking
the lyric passages in a dreamy, almost meditative way that almost stretched them to the point of shapelessness. The Scherzo
was a whirlwind of virtuosity, and the last was an exciting display of pianistic and interpretive power, with a memorable
episode toward the end as he boomed out the melody over a rumbling bass line.
As encores he played Chopin’s
Mazurka in A Minor, Beethoven’s Six Variations, Op. 76, and—in a single nod to his Russian heritage—Prokofiev’s
March from The Love for Three Oranges.
Kissin’s generosity with encores—a trait for which he is known—was
exceeded by his personal generosity to hid friend, Judy Drucker. As she announced at the beginning of the concert, Kissin
was so glad to help Drucker restart her career that he waived his fee.
Evgeny Kissin,
Barbican, London Michael Church | Monday 05 March 2012
Evgeny Kissin likes to disconcert people, and at this Barbican recital he nipped onstage and started to play before
the audience had registered he’d even arrived.
We were afloat on the smooth waters of the first movement
of Beethoven’s ‘Moonlight’ sonata, courtesy of a dry, restrained, unusually even sound. This piece often
tempts players to take liberties with tempo, but Kissin let the music wander where it would, at one point almost reaching
a dreamy stasis: this was the most understated account I have heard in years, but also paradoxically one of the most dramatic.
The Allegretto had a relaxed cantabile, and the Presto had both steely strength and massive force, its articulation crystal-clear.
This extraordinary Russian pianist has passed through a long series of stations, from the infant prodigy, to the
stalker-besieged young superstar, to the embattled thirtysomething whose determination to impose his will on every piece he
touched resulted in some uncomfortably forced recordings. Now 41, he’s emerged onto a plateau where he serenely inhabits
the works he plays, his style securely grounded in the grand classical tradition. His previous two Barbican recitals –
of Beethoven and Liszt – had both technical perfection and impeccable taste, and this was shaping up the same way.
By following the Beethoven with Samuel Barber’s explosive Piano Sonata Opus 16 he played a wild card, and this
too paid off handsomely. Ferociously virtuosic, and springing constant surprises in its strenuous denial of tonality, this
is not great music, but such is Kissin’s artistry that he almost made it seem so. Vladimir Horowitz had premiered this
work – which Irving Berlin and Richard Rodgers had commissioned – and what we got here, with limpid textures,
was a performance by the Horowitz de nos jours.
Winding up with his beloved Chopin, Kissin delivered the A flat
major Nocturne with artless perfection before launching into a definitive account of the Sonata No 3 in B minor. His tone
had a lovely bloom in the opening Allegro, he let the Largo breathe naturally, and he gave the Finale a heroic cast. Then
came three encores, an exquisite Mazurka, Beethoven’s comically pompous ‘Rage over a Lost Penny’, and a
Prokofiev march. And how the audience loved him: their response to this supreme showman made Lang Lang’s ovations look
like the carefully-calculated things they are.
Why not visit the Forum? We have many interesting topics
there . . .
Overwhelming by Underwhelming: Kissin meets
Grieg in Rome February 9, 2012
In
common with many pianists of the Russian school, Evgeny Kissin never lets you forget for a second that the piano is a percussion
instrument. Uncommonly, he has found within this percussion-speak a beautifully cantabile sound whenever he judges it is needed.
He rapped out the opening figure in the most surprising understated way, permitted himself the slightest crescendo, then immediately
let it fade to a whisper. All this as though a veil had been dropped over it. Thank you, sir. No one else I have heard has
so subtly drawn our attention to the major fact that Grieg is speaking in a minor key. Moreover, Kissin does this with the
utmost simplicity, with only a touch of pedal and with his usual unmistakable conviction.
The percussive attack
has the advantage of guaranteeing that the lyricism never lapses into sentimentality. When the flute (the superb Andrea Oliva)
gives out the romantic melody of the second movement it is immediately repeated by the piano. But you have serious competition
tonight Andrea. It is as though the pianist is saying, But just listen to how I do this. And I am not gently blowing air down
a silver tube but hitting strings. That makes a uniqueness of sound which causes audiences to stop breathing.
Kissin
is involved with this music. And he communicates that involvement. He failed to tie together the roars at the bottom of the
keyboard with the thundering out of the first theme in the cadenza. To my ear his sparse use of the pedal had taken him too
far in this passage. The roaring and the thundering were presented as two separate musical entities, whereas Grieg makes a
point of scoring them as one.
The intermezzo which comes midway through the finale, breaking in on that jolly dancing
on the village green movement, certainly needs to make a contrast. Perhaps the contrast was a fraction too much here. But
it was also appropriately evocative of mountain mists, and this time muted with some admirably deft pedal work.
What
Evgene Kissin did was to show us that there is exquisite unexplored music in these pages. But you need to be Evgene Kissin
to do it. I myself hear flickers of humour in the final movement. But Mr Kissin takes his folk dancing “seriously”
though he is never ponderous and his admirable sense of direction never errs. Furthermore he honestly believes that chances
like this are best / never held subject to jest.
A charming Grieg salon piece and a breakneck speed Chopin valse
were served up to the overwhelmed audience as two encores. In both cases, Kissin made magical use of his technique of overwhelming
by underwhelming.
The concert should have been conducted by Vladimir Jurowski who was indisposed. His place was
taken by James Judd. And Rome has been covered in snow and ice with night temperatures below zero and schools and public services
closed. The Accademia was forced to announce a reduced orchestra as some players were unable to make it to the rehearsals
and concert. Mercifully, the excellent leading wind players were present. In the Tchaikovsky second symphony (which replaced
the advertised third) there were outstanding contributions from Guglielmo Pellarin (horn) Paolo Pollastri (oboe) and the ever-reliable
Oliva (flute). The concert opened with the Brahms Tragic Overture. Of the two orchestral works, James Judd has nothing new
to tell us and consequently, on this score, I have nothing new to report.
Audiences around the world will be able to enjoy a series of anniversary performances by the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra
with a few clicks of a button.
To mark conductor Zubin Mehta’s 50th year with the IPO and the orchestra’s
75th anniversary, a ten-day festival of celebration concerts has been arranged.
The performances, which begin on December 17 and include a recital by Evgeny Kissin, will also be streamed
online.
The digital performances will allow British fans
to enjoy what the IPO has to offer. In September, many were disappointed after the IPO’s concert at the Proms was disrupted
by anti-Israel protesters.
Below | Evgeny Kissin's Performance of 21st December 2011 | Recital : Beethoven, Barber and Chopin
Christmas Eve Performance | 24th December 2011 With Evgeny Kissin Playing Chopin Piano Concerto No.1
Gala from Berlin 2011
This year
the Berliner Philharmoniker and their musical director Sir Simon Rattle welcome the New Year together with highly awarded/multi-awarded
Russian pianist Evgeny Kissin . . . . .
Berliner Philharmoniker, Sir Simon Rattle, Evgeny Kissin,
piano
Antonín Dvořák Slavonic Dance No. 1, Op. 46 in C Major Edvard Grieg Symphonic Dance
No. 2, Op. 64 Piano Concerto A minor Op. 16 Maurice Ravel Alborada del gracioso (orchestra version from "Miroirs")
Richard Strauss Salome's dance from "Salome" Igor Stravinsky The Firebird (Danse infernale, Berceuse
and Finale) Johannes Brahms Hungarian Dance No. 1 in G minor
"Russian
pianist Evgeny Kissin may be only 40, but such has been his astonishing career that already he is considered a legendary interpreter
of acclaimed skill and insight. A child prodigy, he first recorded aged 13, his repertoire on record and the recital
platform in the nearly three decades since embracing the monuments of the pianist's repertoire, from the Chopin with which
he first made his name, to the emotional depths of Schumann and the sheer virtuosity of Liszt. Intelligent, powerful, and
able to tackle even the most formidable technical demands and find within them the score's soul, Kissin has become one
of our age's most remarkable musicians".
'He was presumably born with superhuman hands, but now they seem
to be operated by the next generation of ultra-fast processor and versatile software.' LA Times
'He
revealed an orchestral range of colors and a knack for illuminating character.' New York Times
Please Click on Pic to Read Article (Forwarded by Evgeny Kissin :: 15.05.12)
Please Click on Pic for Access to Campaign
Website Information (Forwarded by Evgeny Kissin :: 15.05.12)
The Top 10 Performances of 2011
By David Fleshler & Lawrence Budmen
Click on Pic to Read in Full (South Florida Classical Review)
9. Yuri Bashmet and Evgeny Kissin in Shostakovich’s
Viola Sonata
Two Russian greats at the top of their game played Shostakovich’s Viola Sonata,
the composer’s final testament, with probing intensity. The poignancy and dark angularity of this masterpiece emerged
in an April performance of incredible power and immediacy, even in the vast space of the Arsht Center’s Knight Concert
Hall, meeting Shostakovich’s tormented vision on its own terms. (LB)
A dialogue with Evgeny Kissin
Posted on November 21, 2011 | Maryandmusic's
Blog
I was lucky to have won a free ticket for the concert: Kissin plays Liszt. Today I attended a public
dialogue with Kissin at The University of Hong Kong.
Kissin
was easygoing and friendly. He talked slowly and tried his best to answer every question. He is a child prodigy, but not as
proud as some others.
"I think I play
better over the years, as I hear more in music, and I want more of myself. " Life is indeed a journey of exploring oneself,
and follow one’s heart to wherever it goes.
In
the Q&A session, a lady talked about human’s unrestricted potentials intellectually, and asked him if he had any
plans about composition or conducting. Kissin was frank enough to say that he didn’t have any time for those. "We
only have one lifetime. So I choose the things I’m best at." He said. He further said that living in the world
created by those great composers, he didn’t even want to compose any works himself.
"How many books can one read in one’s whole life?" He asked the insightful
question. Well, if we suppose that one reads two books per week, and round up the number, one would be able to read 5,000
books in 50 years. It’s just a tip of the iceberg. Therefore, as Kissin put it, "it is a luxury to read all books
one can get hold of." This applies to virtually everything in life.
A very important part of growing up is to learn to make decisions, and to give up things that you
are not too passionate about or you’re not too good at. I look forward to his performance on the day after tomorrow.
What I Learnt from Evgeny
Kissin Sydney Symphony — By Freya Franzen
Few individual musicians experience what it’s like to be admired across the globe for the music they play. It’s
true that great music transcends national borders, but when it comes to a solo classical music career, only a few talented
people ever attain international acclaim. When I think of the soloist stars that have ruled the roost in my lifetime, names
like Anne-Sophie Mutter, Gil Shaham, Truls Mørk and Alban Gerhardt always spring to mind. However, if I could
name one luminary of our generation that all of us could learn a thing or two from, it would be Evgeny Kissin.
For those who don’t know, Evgeny Kissin is a Russian pianist whom
many people consider one of the world’s greatest musicians. On 15 September 2011, I got to play with Evgeny as part
of the Sydney Symphony at the Sydney Opera House Concert Hall. To state the obvious, it was an immense privilege and an experience
that I will never forget, but the benefits of playing alongside experts of his caliber require a bit more explanation.
Evgeny is a true perfectionist and music
is his lifeblood; this appears to have dictated not only his rigorous practice ethics, but also the level at which he understands
music. His performances are always masterfully spontaneous. When I performed with Evgeny, I couldn’t help but feel that
his musical expression exquisitely described the ideas that Grieg and Chopin were trying to convey in their compositions.
Sacrifice is central to Evgeny’s success. When you hear Evgeny play in person, you understand that his
deftness hasn’t come effortlessly. He’s an exceptional talent and has been ever since his youth, but to scale
the heights of the music world, you must forgo aspects of your life that others take for granted. I have little doubt that
Evgeny’s superlative commitment to his art and the fame and demand for his time that this has created has indeed cost
him real-life experiences. What I love about that though, is that he has taken ultimate control of his destiny; the packed
out concert halls and endless list of accolades are his reward. How many of us get to experience that?
Evgeny
really made me think about music. Hearing his interpretations of the piano repertoire is more than just entertainment; it’s
an awe-inspiring learning experience. Although there is not a lot a pianist can teach a violinist like me in terms of technique,
masterclasses and live performances with expert performers like Evgeny are invaluable – they help you to understand
the internal thought-processes that lead to the most beautiful sounds. Playing with Evgeny helped me to understand his interpretation
of different forms of music, which gave me a unique yet exemplary perspective of how I should be thinking.
It’s
hard to even imagine being as good as Evgeny Kissin. Playing with him is one of those opportunities that money just can’t
buy.
Standing with Israel
♥ Standing for Light and Liberty
"We
extend our hand to all neighbouring states and their peoples in an offer of peace and good neighbourliness, and appeal to
them to establish bonds of cooperation and mutual help with the sovereign Jewish people settled in its own land."
(from the Proclamation
of the Establishment of the State of Israel)
Op-ed: While Arabs shun the disabled, Israel gives hope to less fortunate members of
society Giulio Meotti
While Iranian scientists are being deployed in the nuclear bunkers and
Israeli F16s could be ready to take off, one story reminds the world that Israel and Israelis are involved not only in hurting
and being hurt, but in giving hope to those without hope.
World-renowned violinist Itzhak Perlman, afflicted with polio as a child, just attended the 60th anniversary
celebration of the Israeli Foundation for Handicapped Children. While in the Arab world disabled people have been called “the
invisibles,” because they are segregated and hidden from the public eye, Israel’s work with illness and disabilities
would merit a book in itself.
Israel’s
ruthless determination in tackling head-on the physical problems that arise either from natural causes, terrorism or war is
astounding and says much about Israel’s moral lesson to the world beyond the headlines on killings, kidnappings, snipers,
and suicide
In the world’s consciousness, the
word “Israel” has become equated with fear, when the Jewish state is in fact the world's most important laboratory
for healers of diseases. There is an amazing quantity of research, of inventions, of newfound techniques for curing and helping
the ill, the blind, and the paralyzed to return to normal life.
Scientists at Hebrew University have developed the drug Exelon for the treatment of Alzheimer’s
disease and traumatic brain injuries. The Weizmann Institute had led to the development of promising new therapies for acute
spinal cord injuries. Indeed, the late actor Christopher Reeve described Israel as the “world center” for research.
In Israel it is very common to see children
with Down’s syndrome in television programs and there are many special parks for disabled people. Paraplegic war heroes
are the protagonists of many soap operas and disabled athletes are extremely successful, like brave swimmer Keren Leibovitz.
Israel is different
All the archive photos of Franklin
Delano Roosevelt show him sitting or standing; by order of the US president, they never gave away the fact that he was a paraplegic,
put into his wheelchair by polio. Most Americans, before the TV era, never knew he was disabled. Yet Israel is a very different
country.
Five major wars and frequent
terror attacks since Israel’s founding in 1948 have resulted in thousands of disabled veterans and civilian survivors
of suicide attacks. Each morning, these people wake up to the worst nightmares: brain injuries, birth defects, paralysis.
They epitomize Jewish courage and Israel’s joy de vivre. They are a microcosm of the unfailing spirit so many of us
in the West associate with being Israeli.
Israel's
miracle is epitomized by Professor Reuven Feuerstein, the pioneer who has dedicated his life to pushing Down people beyond
their supposed limits. He has said that “chromosomes will never have the last word” and has helped people with
this syndrome to achieve a level of functioning that most people who work with them thought impossible.
Feuerstein’s method has been adopted by many European countries.
Another example is the 2,248 “children of Chernobyl” who have been brought to Israel for treatment. Or doctors
such as Mario Goldin, who emigrated from Argentina and whose objective in life was to reduce “the pain of those who
suffer.” A suicide bomber killed him while he was waiting for the bus.
In Palestinian society, the
most famous disabled was Hamas founder Ahmed Yassin. In Iraq, terrorists used many disabled women for suicide attacks. In
Israel, Down syndrome youth can ask to be inducted into the army. This is the story of the Middle East conflict: death cult
vs. Israel’s right to life.
Giulio
Meotti, a journalist with Il Foglio, is the author of the book A New Shoah: The Untold Story of Israel's Victims of Terrorism
Michael Curtis.. Gatestone
Institute.. 12 April '12 Shylock in The Merchant of Venice rightly protested against injustice towards Jews and to manifestations of
malignant anti-Semitism. At this time, it is appropriate for fair -minded people to protest against the unjust assault on
Israeli institutions, its culture, and its people being waged by some European professionals against fellow Israeli professionals,
as well by those groups accustomed on all occasions to supporting Palestinians and condemning Israel.
These groups
always apply a double standard in their automatic critical comments on Israel's behavior and actions, while rarely mentioning
violations of human rights by other countries. Consciously or otherwise, the European professionals have tended to accept
the Palestinian narrative of history and their present conditions that is based on negative images, myths, and malicious stereotypes
about Israel and Jews.
Those participating in the campaign against Israel should heed Shylock's words to his
accusers: "You have among you many a purchased slave which…you use in abject and in slavish parts." Certainly,
those European and American academics who have for some time called for a boycott of Israeli universities and teachers ought
to be conscious of this. More recently, cultural performers have joined this campaign calling for a boycott of particular
Israeli activities and for pressure to be put on Israel to change its policies, especially on the issue of what they charge
is "illegal occupation of occupied land."
On March 29, 2012 the British newspaper, The Guardian,
published a letter signed by 37 actors, playwrights, and producers, including prominent individuals such as Emma Thompson,
Mark Rylance, Mike Leigh, David Calder, and Jonathan Miller. The letter asked the Globe Theater in London to withdraw its
invitation to Habima, (The Stage) Israel's National Theater since 1958, to perform The Merchant of Venice in
its World Festival of 37 Shakespeare plays to be performed in 37 languages starting in May 2012.
The ostensible
reason for this call to boycott Habima was that the company had performed in the "halls of culture" in two unnamed
Israeli settlements. The two in fact were Kiryat Arba, founded in 1968 on the site near Hebron where Jews were massacred by
Arabs in 1929, and Ariel, which was founded in 1978 about 11 miles east of the Green Line.
This was not the first
time that groups have tried to prevent Israelis from performing. The letter in The Guardian had been preceded by
a letter to the director of the Globe, in January 2012, written by a group in Israel, apparently Jewish and Arab citizens,
calling itself Boycott from Within, founded in 2009. A year earlier, in August 2011, a performance sponsored by the BBC at
the Royal Albert Hall in London by the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, (IPO) which played works by Anton Webern, Max Bruch,
and Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, was disrupted by Palestinian protestors and their allies. This churlish behavior led to the cancellation
for the first time of a live radio broadcast by the BBC. At that time 23 professional musicians published a letter in the
British paper, The Independent, castigating the BBC for inviting the IPO.
In all these cases the displays of ignorance,
malice and blinded ideology are worse than farce: they are slanderous. It is difficult to accept the view of these 23 musicians
that the IPO was Israel's prime weapon in the denial of human rights. It was equally difficult to accept the view that
performances in Israel by American jazz artists such as McCoy Tyner and Cassandra Wilson can be regarded as supporting Israeli
policies of "ethno-racial segregation and apartheid" as protestors proclaimed. It is even more difficult to take
seriously the actor David Calder, one of the letter signers and who himself has played the role of Shylock with the Royal
Shakespeare Company, who is quoted as saying that Habima was part of a "cultural fig leaf" for Israel's daily
brutality.
The Guardian letter speaks of the Globe Theater "associating itself with policies of exclusion
practiced by the Israeli state and endorsed by its national theatre company." Anyone objective observer should have been
familiar, though the 37 apparently were not, with the broad range of productions of Habima which has staged plays on a variety
of themes, some critical of Israel, and which as a group has no political policies of its own, nor acts on outside instructions.
Though some of the signatories of the letter, such as Emma Thompson and Mark Rylance, fine actors on the stage and
screen, are unlikely to be regarded as knowledgeable, sophisticated analysts of Middle East history and politics, others such
as Caryl Churchill and Mike Leigh are well known for their habitual criticism of the policies of Israel. It is regrettable,
though understandable, that Thompson and others should not be fully aware of the complex issues concerning the disputed territories
or the historic connection of the Jewish people to that land.
The argument in the letter that the Habima performance
would be complicit with human rights violations and the illegal colonization of occupied land by Israel suggests three things;
the writers need tutoring in the niceties of international law and Middle East affairs; they are, by their silence on the
issues, implicitly condoning the human rights violations of the companies from China, a country which occupies Tibet, which
is due to perform Richard III in Mandarin, from Turkey, a country that represses the Kurds and occupies part of Cyprus,
which is to perform Anthony and Cleopatra, and from Russia which is presenting Measure for Measure; and
they are disrespecting the fact that Habima is the most well known and respected Hebrew language theater in the world.
It is saddening that the prominent members of the theatrical and musical professions should be so benighted in their
biased view of Israeli policies and their lack of understanding of the realities of Middle East politics. It is perhaps most
ironic that the controversy they have created is about the disinterested decision of the Globe Theater. The 37 signatories
of the letter should be reminded of the blue plaque outside the Theater honoring Sam Wanamaker, the American Jewish actor
who was blacklisted in 1952 during the McCarthy years despite his distinguished service in U.S. forces in World War II, and
who is the person most responsible for the rebuilding of the Globe as an exact replica of the one in which Shakespeare acted.
What would the visionary Wanamaker, who made the Globe an international symbol of high culture, have thought of the biased,
ungenerous 37? Echoing Shylock, probably "I am not bound to please you with my answers."
Michael Curtis is Distinguished Professor Emeritus
of Political Science at Rutgers University, and author of Should Israel Exist? A Sovereign Nation under attack by the International
Community.
An unofficial
fan site for all those who love the genius and extraordinary talent of Evgeny Kissin. This is a non-profit site maintained voluntarily. Photographs/content
found herein remain the property of their original owners. No copyright infringement is intended.
Audiences around the world will be able to enjoy a series of anniversary performances by the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra
with a few clicks of a button.
