The Chamber Music Festival in its new exploded autumn formula was strong, inviting the prestigious pianist Emanuel Ax to come and close the event. Unfortunately, the result did not live up to the bill.
“One of the best pianists in the world” proclaimed the Festival flyer. It is true that Emanuel Ax left beautiful memories in Montreal, in particular an excellent Sonata D. 960 by Schubert at Pro Musica in 2011.
We were very far from that Tuesday night at the Bourgie Hall where the American pianist, of which it was one of the first recitals in 18 months, told us Denis Brott, artistic director of the festival, gave in a program dedicated to ” last Chopin ”a little refined game weighed down by an excess of pedal.
If we were crying inside during the 3rd movement of the 3rd Sonata of Chopin, Tuesday evening, it is not because the slightest emotion filtered from the playing of Emanuel Ax, but because for the first time since November 1 we realized and felt in our flesh the loss, the mourning of the great pianist Nelson Freire. To hear “one of the best pianists in the world” play Chopin, that could now be that! Fortunately by skipping generation, the Geniusas, Kolesnikov, Grosvenor, Rana, Richard-Hamelin and Liu will open up to other experiences.
Chopin halo
So what did we hear? A more than expressive “pianistic” Chopin. That is who can defend himself. We have heard so much about “overflow” on the subject that a little expressive restraint does not hurt. But when there are two themes, the second being softer (or “feminine” as we used to say), even if we do not overplay “femininity”, there is nonetheless a transition, a way of slide from one idea to another. These bridges between ideas constitute one of the magic of Chopin’s music. When jostled, tucked away or drowned in a pedal tub, the whole thing loses much appeal.
Where can a course begin with the heavy lead? f minor of Nocturne op. 55 n ° 2 ? Throughout the evening, Emanuel Ax never provides an answer to this. There is no play of shadows and lights (end of this Nocturne and transition to the next one), no gentle hesitation in the pulsation (Mazurka op. 56 n ° 2) since, like the rest (Barcarolle !), the Mazurkas op. 56 are too strong and haloed in an excess of resonance which blurs the cut.
the Scherzo n ° 4 and theImpromptu n ° 3 are evacuated from the announced program and when Emmanuel Ax finishes the 1st part of the 3rd Sonata a part of the room which did not recognize her applauds like one man. Nothing to applaud: this 1st part of 3rd Sonata was a sad, disjointed exercise. The pianist then had no choice but to string together the movements attacca to avoid any misunderstanding.
What we heard was obviously very presentable, but not up to the reputation of the pianist and, ironically, certainly not to the level of what Charles Richard-Hamelin would have delivered in the same program.
We can imagine that if Emanuel Ax really took an 18-month break, he will need several recitals to regain his marks, his reflexes and the measure of a hall. He had in any case not taken that of Bourgie Tuesday evening.