|
Blazing technique. Unbelievable virtuosity. Astounding talent.
The recital by Clive Driskill-Smith, the young English virtuoso (there's no getting around the use of that word here), invites a string of superlatives such as one does not often use. This performer surmounted the obstacles of a hugely difficult program, and a problematic instrument, with apparent unconcern.
To these ears, it was the Mozart K608 Fantasia that most successfully married the player's huge technique, pristine articulation, and sensitive phrasing with the uncompromising speech of this instrument and dry acoustic of the church. The complex counterpoint of the two double fugues, the lavish ornamentation of both the fantasia sections and the quiet andante, and florid pedal lines were brought off with total clarity and complete control.
Also delightful was the Bach Trio on Allein Gott in der Hoh' sei Ehr, registered with restraint and transparency. The music is characterized by incomplete fragments of the chorale tune (with which Bach's listeners would have been very familiar), and Driskill-Smith's wise use of articulation and subtle rubato encouraged the audience to hear and recognize the presence of the melody, and thus the structure and logic of the music.
The Reger Fantasia on Wachet auf (a tune whose stark power has attracted composers from Bach to Distler and beyond) was also well served on this occasion. The famous "black-with-notes" texture of the music of this post-Lizst, post-Wagner composer was rendered with an eye-opening degree of clarity. In one of the evening's few light moments, Mr. Driskill-Smith told us that the mysterious opening was supposed to represent Death. Or Creation. It depends whom you ask. To me, it was redolent of the famous depiction of Chaos that opens Haydn's Creation.
The Roger-Ducasse Pastorale has faded from recital programs in recent decades, and it was a delight to hear this gem of the early-20th-century literature. Its elegant and graceful flavor veils its formidable technical difficulties, none of which seemed to hamper this performance in the least.
Anyone who can so much as play the notes of the Durufle Suite deserves admiration, and Driskill-Smith certainly managed that to a degree that makes my hands and feet ache just thinking about it.
|
