Pianist Lorenzo Medel |
Featuring:
Lorenzo
Medel, piano
Manila
Symphony Orchestra
Arturo
Molina, conductor
Programme:
Johann Sebastian Bach Prelude and Fugue No. 23
in B major, BWV 892
Ludwig
van Beethoven Piano Sonata No. 23 in F
minor, Op. 57 Appassionata
Nicanor
Abelardo First Nocturne
Frédéric
Chopin Étude in A minor, Op. 25, No. 11 Winterwind
Franz
Liszt Grandes études de Paganini No. 6 in
A minor Theme and Variations
Claude
Debussy Préludes Book 2 No. 12 Feux
d'artifice, L 123
Béla
Bartók Two Romanian Folk Dances, Op. 8a
Sergei
Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No. 2 in C
minor, Op. 18
I
can still remember the time when I asked young pianist Lorenzo Medel when he
would play a piano concerto by Sergei Rachmaninoff which could be either the
Rach 2 or 3. And he responded by saying that he wanted to but that he had to
increase his hand span first. I guess that right after that, his hands have
gotten bigger (he has also gotten a lot taller too) since I learned soon after
that he would be playing the very popular Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No. 2 in
C minor, Op. 18 with the Manila Symphony Orchestra.
Fast
forward some months later, that time finally came as Lorenzo “Enzo” Medel
mounted his third solo piano recital at the Philam Life Auditorium. It had been
about a year and a half since I saw him perform the Liszt Piano concerto at the
same venue.
Enzo,
dressed in a sheer and glossy, black barong, began the night by playing Johann
Sebastian Bach’s Prelude and Fugue No. 23 in B major, BWV 892 from the
Well-Tempered Clavier Book II. I’ve always been honest that Bach’s music
doesn’t get through me and that it’s really challenge for me since a lot of
pianists start their performances with a Bach piece. I am just glad that the
next piece, Ludwig van Beethoven’s Piano Sonata No. 23 in F minor, Op. 57 also
known as the “Appassionata”, is a very familiar one. This section of the
program got my brain right on track with Enzo performing this comfortably despite
the tempestuous and violent nature of the piece which has been on his
repertoire for quite some time now. Enzo then slowed things down with Nicanor
Abelardo’s First Nocturne which was the calm before the storm considering the pieces
the immediately followed.
Enzo
then played virtuosic pieces one after the other: Frédéric Chopin’s Étude in A
minor, Op. 25, No. 11 also known as the “Winterwind”, Franz Liszt’s Grandes
études de Paganini No. 6 in A minor “Theme and Variations”, Claude Debussy’s Préludes
Book 2 No. 12 “Feux d'artifice”, L 123 and Béla Bartók Two Romanian Folk Dances,
Op. 8a. It seemed to me that these demanding pieces were just another walk in
the park for Enzo. For people who were there just for the Rach 2 and thought
that they had to sit out an hour of solo piano pieces before hearing the
concerto, they were treated to a display of Enzo’s technical brilliance that only
served to heighten the anticipation for the most awaited piece of the night.
For
Enzo’s performance of Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor,
Op. 18, he was accompanied by the Manila Symphony Orchestra under the baton of
Arturo Molina. During this time, he has donned his signature blue barong. At the start of the piece, I immediately thought about the time
when he mentioned increasing his hand span since I didn’t hear any arpeggiated
chords at the opening. And it’s not only his wider hand span that I noticed but
also his maturity as a pianist. When he played the Liszt concerto back in June
2011, he still seemed like a kid playing in a sandbox which was a concert grand
piano. And during the Rach 2, he has grown a lot (literally and figuratively)
and started to exhibit some dashes of sensitivity, finesse and depth.
I admit
that the programme prepared for this evening was quite heavy with pieces
designed to impress that they almost overwhelmed me. I really wanted another
change of pace and Enzo somehow heard my plea when he played his encore, Chopin’s
Étude in E minor, Op. 10, No. 3 Tristesse.
Enzo did show a huge improvement during this concert but he is still far from
being a complete pianist. Yes, he can pound those keys and do extremely fast
and difficult passages with his eyes closed and probably not miss a beat, but
he still has a long way to go in effectively communicating and playing more
than just the notes in the music sheet. At 17 years old, he is still very young
and I’ve always believed that maturity in music can only be achieved through
time and life experiences. Speaking of experiences, Enzo will add more experience
that can improve his performances as he prepares to fly over to the US
for a series of auditions in music institutions there. I wish him all the best
and may he get his desired results.
Lastly and on a lighter note, Enzo has considerably improved his walk entering the stage and the way he bows to the audience is rather peculiar and yet amusing.
1 comment:
Hi RAd,
Thank you for being "fair and balanced" to this young, promising pianist. Considering he is only 17, a world of opportunity still awaits him.
May I also say that this blog of yours is a superb service to the "culturally starved". I just wish you will always have the energy and inspiration to sustain this through the years.
Best wishes!!!!!!
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