Rhapsody in Blue (10/21/17)

Phillip Dyson, piano
Well, almost. We eventually heard a few snippets of Rhapsody in Blue, after:

Prelude in C sharp minor, op. 3 no. 2 (1892) – Rachmaninov
Impromptu no. 3 in G flat, D.899 (1827) – Schubert
Waltz in A flat minor, op. 69 ‘L’Adieu’; Fantaisie-Impromptu, op. 66 – Chopin
Valses Nobles (movts) – (1898–1917) – Ravel
Gymnopedie no. 1 – Satie
Bethena; The Entertainer; Swipesy Cake Walk – Scott Joplin (hmm, I would have thought ‘Joplin’ would suffice)
Cake Walk – Debussy
Alligator Crawl – Fats Waller
—Interval—
Consolation No. 3 in D flat major – Liszt
Rustle of Spring. Op. 32 no. 3 – Sinding
‘Moonlight’ Sonata, op. 27, no. 2 – Adagio, Allegretto, Presto (1801) – Beethoven
Don’t Get Around Much Anymore – Duke Ellington/Art Tatum
Oh, Lady Be Good; I’ll Build a Stairway to Paradise; Prelude No. 2; I Got Rhythm – George Gershwin

First off, all titles, composers and movement descriptions are taken from the printed program—I wasn’t about to try to clean that up. And all dates were announced from the stage and scribbled in my notes. Housekeeping done!

Rachmaninov’s prelude had a slightly dark quality, with rich harmonies and a rhythmic section leading back to a more powerful statement of the opening themes. Schubert’s impromptu was lyrical and gentle, with a rippling movement throughout, tuneful and pretty. Chopin’s ‘L’Adieu’ was wistful without being sad, and had a playful section after the opening, which seemed to lead into a segue to the next Chopin piece, rippling like the Schubert but a little more ambitious—indeed, this was the ‘I’m Always Chasing Rainbow’ opus, finishing with flying fingers.

In the second grouping, Ravel’s work started out gentle, if not quite wispy, reminding one of Impressionist paintings. It reminded me of being a waltz in name only, similar to the first Chopin offering, but then had a charming music-box feel, plus a fuller section that eventually segued into Satie’s Gymnopedie. (You all know it and probably could have hummed along.) A note here on Mr. Dyson’s many segues. At times, it seemed that we were listening to very well-plotted-out arrangements of some of these works, rather than the works themselves. Just an observation, not a complaint.

Joplin’s Bethena had a gentle rag opening, then a more energetic section followed by a rag/waltz feel in a very well-structured rag composition—and that’s not an oxymoron. Often, ragtime has a loose, jazzy, improvisational feel but it can be very structured. The Entertainer was nicely introduced, as in, not too fast, with a few fillips, pun intended, added. Even though the music flowed unbroken through this segment, it’s worth noting that from time to time Mr. Dyson spoke from the stage, in a very engaging manner. I found myself thinking that he was a cross between Patrick Stewart (with a twinkle in his eye) and Judi Dench (with a twinkle in her eye). But back to the music. Swipesy Cake Walk was a bluesy rag that led seamlessly into Debussy’s Golliwog’s Cake Walk which included a stride piano feel leading into a more jazz-like rag, Fats Waller’s Alligator Rag. A note here, Mr. Dyson often appears at the major Scott Joplin Ragtime Festival in Sedalia, MO in early June. Hmmm, maybe a road trip is in order?

Some of the pieces on the second half of the program were familiar to me—in fact, I heard Mr. Dyson play them back in 2014. But hey, they’re classical classics for a reason. Once again, Lizst’s Consolation was wistful and sad for me—a piece that was played at Michael’s memorial service in 2008, so it will always have a special place in my heart. Sinding’s Rustle of Spring is, as announced from the stage, one of those pseudo-warhorses that are making a bit of a comeback. To me, it has an almost-too-cloying sentimental sweetness. To each his own.

Moonlight Sonata’s first movement is iconic in its placid presentation of gentleness. The other two movements, however, are more substantial, and the work taken as a whole is very effective.

Similar to the multiple segues toward the end of the first half, the Gershwin/
Ellington/Gershwin/Tatum/Gershwin mash-up that ended the program was quite interesting. All of the above-mentioned pieces were linked together (plus a little bit of American in Paris thrown in for good measure) providing a fun ending to a fun concert. This is an artist I’ll keep an ear and eye out for in the future.

ConcertMeister