Naumburg Nights (8/5/14)

(No, you're not seeing double! The last one was Knights.) Oh wait, you are seeing double!

Christina and Michelle Naughton: A Concert for Two Pianos

I believe this was a first for me—I’ve seen piano four hands before, but never two pianos (at least not live). Not only are they sisters, they’re twins. Fortunately they were dressed in two different shades of green, so it was easy to distinguish one from the other, though I’m still not sure which was which.

Scaramouche – 1. Vif; 2. Moderé; 3. Brazileira – Darius Milhaud (1892–1974)
Hallelujah Junction – Three unnamed movements – John Adams (1947–)
La Valse – Maurice Ravel (1875–1937)
Rite of Spring – Part I: The Adoration of the Earth; Part II: The Sacrifice –
Igor Stravinsky (1882–1971)

The first movement of the Milhaud reminded me of a music box run amok, with lots of running scales and flourishes. I wondered if maybe it was based on folk tunes. The second had a gentle opening, with a call-and-response mix of tune and chords. There was a section that sounded like walking music that then morphed into a sweet waltz section, still with a music box feel. The third had definite Latin rhythms from the get go. It was tuneful and was a cross between Latin rhythms and ragtime. It finished with a full-out restatement of the opening theme.

For the Adams piece, the pianists switched instruments. That is, the one playing the stage right piano for the first piece was now playing the stage left piano and vice versa. The most I can say for this piece was that it displayed rhythmic explorations in a repetitive way. There were variations of rhythms, a hint of boogie-woogie, a thump-thumping section, a gentle section, a ... well, you get my drift. I was more impressed with the playing than I was with the composition.

La Valse had a misty opening until hints of waltz phrases began appearing, coalescing into more structured and lengthier phrases. There were variations on waltz themes, with one section particularly reminiscent of a French carrousel, at least to me. The piece sort of came together and then deconstructed itself.

The playing throughout was really very good, though some of the musical shadings were lost because of the outdoor setting. The soft sections were really soft while the bang-’em-up sections lacked oomph; without benefit of walls the sound dissipated fairly rapidly. Also, the pianists played all of this difficult repertoire from memory—quite a feat, if you ask me.

Most of what I wrote in the last paragraph sums up my musings on the Stravinsky. I liked it but it lacked some oomph. Not being overly familiar with the score or its attendant ballet plot, I wasn’t overly captivated by the piece as a whole. I’m glad I heard it but I’m not sure I’d seek out the score—two-piano or orchestral version—any time in the near future.

Fortunately, the weather was fine, if a bit warm and muggy. There’s one more concert in the Naumburg series on the 12th. The long-term forecast is a bit iffy, so keep your fingers crossed for me.

ConcertMeister