Here is a video of Gabriela Montero's performance.
http://bit.ly/m0XCwy
Saturday, 4 June 2011
Spontaneous Beauty
It is an odd time to start my new blog talking about classical music when the regular performance season is coming to an end in Toronto. Yesterday (June 1) the soloist at the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Venezuelan pianist Gabriela Montero, delivered such a rare display of spontaneous virtuosity and beauty that she inspired me to think about a much discussed question this music season in North America - the future of classical music orchestra.
Ms. Montero played Rachmaninoff's Variations on a theme by Paganini, an all-time audience favourite. The audiences responded enthusiastically enough after her performance. However it was Ms. Montero's encore that truly brought the house down.
She told the audience that improvisation is her specialty and it's a pity that it's almost a lost art in the classical music world. She invited the audience to name a tune for her "playground" meaning the piano in front of her. Summertime was named and within a few bars she managed to turn a sultry, jazzy broadway number into a Bach-like fugue. Then the "Hockey Night" opening tune was called out and she turned these few bars of TV music into a fiery tango dance sending the audience to jump on our feet.
Judging from the enthusiasm of the audience last night, live classical music is alive and kicking but musicians have to give their audiences a reason to come, to listen to them performing live. Improvisation is probably as good a reason as I can imagine because literally no two performances would be alike. Of course no one can expect an orchestra to improvise constantly or deliver an entire program on improvisation. However, it is important to let loose and embrace a sense of spontaneity to give the music some freshness.
Ironically, the Rachmaninoff Rhapsody last night seemed restrictive compared to Ms. Montero's solo improvisation.
You can catch Ms. Montero's improvisation on YouTube. The clip I added here is very similar to the experience I had at the Roy Thomson Hall, home to the TSO, last night.
http://bit.ly/m0XCwy
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