Michael Sellers in Concert (4/22)

Michael Sellers is a pianist whose program was half Chopin (1810–1849), half not Chopin. Part one included Polonaise-Fantaisie, Op. 61; Eight Mazurkas (I won’t name and number all of them); Nocturne in B Major, Op. 32 No. 1; and Polonaise in A flat Major, Op. 53, “Heroic.” After intermission, we heard Milonga del Angel, and Adios, nonino, Astor Piazzolla (1921–1992); Fugue from “Sonata, Op. 26,” Samuel Barber (1910–1981); The Harmonica Player, from “Alley Tunes: Three Scenes from the South,” David Guion (1893–1981); Three Preludes (1926), George Gershwin (1898–1937); and five songs from “The Gershwin Songbook” (no attribution).

First off, Mr. Sellers played everything from memory. My notes for the first half include, “A bit heavy handed,” (for the opening piece) and, for some of the eight Mazurkas, “a little more legato,” “treated them as little gems,” “playful touches,” “finished with a nice flourish,” and “his (Sellers’) own style that I found a bit choppy/dry.” The Nocturne that followed had more flow within sections, and the sections themselves connected better.

The “Heroic” suited the pianist’s style—maybe a few dropped notes, but a powerful rendition.

In the second half, Milonga had a mixture of melancholy plus some upbeat style–very tango. Adios nonino (we learned from the pianist) was a signature piece, composed after Piazzolla’s father died. There was angst and a dirge-like quality to the very beautiful music.

The Barber was rhythmic with a Latin flair—virtuosic writing and playing—much like a perpetual motion movement in a ballet. The Guion piece was touted as being an encore piece for Horowitz. I found it a bit long for an encore, unless Horowitz did more with it than Mr. Sellers did.

My notes for the Gershwin Preludes were brief and included “quite original, considering the year of their composition. Touch of a blues-y feeling in No. 2.” I listen to them on the radio and consider them part of regular listening, without really considering that they come from 1926. A completely different era, though they seem to span American Classical-cum-war years, cum-representational Americana. Just my thoughts.

The five Gershwin songs (piano version) put me in the mind of listening to a really good supper club/nightclub pianist riffing on popular music. And that’s not a bad thing.

ConcertMeister
(Thank you, Pheas!)