Angela Hewitt: The Well-Tempered Klavier Book II

It is always exciting to watch a world famous musician perform live, and this time it was solo Canadian pianist Angela Hewitt, named Best Artist of 2006 by Gramaphone Magazine. On Sunday 27th April, I headed expectantly to Victoria Concert Hall with several of my MEP classmates, excited to hear her rendition of Bach's renowned Well-Tempered Klavier Book II

Much to my disappointment we arrived late, and by the time we entered, Hewitt was already on to the D Major. I was immediately entranced by her gentle rendition of my favourite piece in the collection and impressed by how subtly she brought out the intertwined lines in the fugue. But as she progressed through the first half of the programme, I was vaguely unsettled by the monotony of mood. Perhaps it was reverence for the hailed, and add to that the fact that I'm not a pianist, I did not dare to form any judgement against her.

During the interval, however, I was gently surprised to learn that many of my friends who went along were not impressed by her playing at all. Among their complaints were over usage of the suspension pedal (which according to Kwan Rui she warned against in her masterclass the previous day) , excessive tempo rubato, the deliberate obscuring of running lines etc. Reflecting on their comments, I found myself agreeing to some of their opinions. Indeed my impression of Bach's Prelude and Fugues had been one of gusto and punctuation, whereas Hewitt has decided on that night to imbue in almost every one of them an excessively, tediously phrased femininity.

"Many people still think that that's how you have to play his [Bach] music--stiff and unbending. If I can change that misconception on this tour, then I will be very happy!" - Angela Hewitt (http://www.angelahewitt.com/)

Evidently Hewitt set out to knock down some preconceptions on Bach's music, but though I think I had heard too from somewhere else that the Baroque stereotype of strict tempo and abstinence from pedaling is misguided, I found that her deliberate obscuring (for I do not doubt her technicality) of running lines while emphasizing salient phrases, and dramatic ritenuento at cadential points, though appealing to the layman, tended to rob the compositions of their polyphonic brilliance and also killed much of their kinetic drive.

I believe there could have been better renditions and perhaps less heavy repertoires, but paying $9 to watch Angela Hewitt was really a catch. Despite it being important to keep one's musical integrity, I frequently find myself deliberately overlooking differences in musical opinion so that I may just sit down for an evening and enjoy myself.

untitled:01

I must shamefully admit that I fell asleep when I attended my first electro-acoustic concert in Birmingham - and how I regret that! When I heard that NAFA is presenting a similar concert, I did not have high hopes. But having recently been inspired to delve into the discipline of sound art, I attended anyway. Here's the poster:

For a concert of an hour in length, put together by amateurs, the it was actually not too bad. Well, at least I stayed the entire duration. There were pleasant moments tucked here and there, but on the whole, the compositions where rather uninspiring. They all followed a similar audio pattern (a symmetrical building and then releasing of tension) and have a predilection towards the loud and jarring. Much more could also have been done to explore the timbre and panning; too literal interpretations were also taken of themes that were much too sombre and - for lack of a kinder word - hackneyed. But for all it's shortcomings, I really like the set-up of the concert and how the spotlights focus on the individual performers as they present their works.

What was truly pleasant about the concert, however, was the fact that it came to pass and the audience strength was surprisingly high. Electro-acoustic being such a cutting edge art form is still in it's nascent stages in many countries and has hitherto only caught the attention of a niche community. If this is a harbinger of a more prolific future for electro-acoustic music, I am glad to have been involved in the appreciation of it.

With so much music in the air, a few of my friends and I also decided to play a game of musical exquisite corpse (inspired by Lucky 7, which was frustratingly rated R21). With it's birth in Starbucks @ The Cathy in a tattered paper bag, I, Ivana, Grace and Gareth shall begin our little game, each of us having 2 weeks to complete our individual parts of 5 minutes. Down this windy road, the near future promises fun, but holds too so much tantalizing mystery!

Welcome to the Voices

I picked up “Welcome to the Voice” [2007] from the Esplanade Library yesterday, when I was desperately scanning the shelves for an interesting record. It was the inclusion of both Barbara Bonney and Sting, two singers I know come from vastly different genres, in this work that immediately caught my attention. Although Sting’s crossing over into the classical genre is not unprecedented (Songs From the Labyrinth [2006]), his participation in this project is of a vastly different nature – one where the pop voice is juxtaposed with the classical voice in an eclectic musical tapestry.

The story follows opera-stricken foundry worker Dionysius (Sting) battle myriad forces – ghosts of opera divas, factories worker, his friend (Robert Wyatt), a policeman (Elvis Costello) – that try to pry him away from his beloved opera singer (Barbara Bonney). A collaborative effort between Steve Nieve and Muriel Teodori, I think much of the credit should be conferred on the former, who wrote the music; the libretto, written by the latter, was a disappointment, to say the least.

To begin with, the premise of the story is unconvincing and rather trite. Blind passion is a common theme in operas of the past; but for a modern production, a lack of complex reasoning may appear as sluggishness in plot construct. When the musical closed in on the end with the question “The voices that bond us / do you know what it is?”, I had to suppress the urge to drawl a sarcastic “No?”. The diction is also at best charming - nothing spectacular. More often than not, however, the images invoked are awkward and confusing. Moreover, the scansion mismatches the music too frequently for comfort.

The music, on the other hand, is truly fascinating. Widely varied voices are brought together to weave a multi-fabricated tapestry of a desolate yet emotionally charged musical landscape: the sultry songs of Sting; the bright vocalization of Barbara; the broad deep intonation of Elvis etc. These strains are also placed in interesting combinations to effect an otherworldly sensation. Fortunately for me, the singers have neglected to enunciate the words, hence allowing me to enjoy the sounds without being hampered by the unkempt verbiage.

Another intriguing part of the composition is the instrumentation. It employs an impressive array of instruments ranging from the shakuhachi to the theremin and to the Brodsky Quartet. The music engages all of these instruments livelily, bouncing among the familiar comfort of a string quartet, the edgily electronic synthesizer and theremin, and the jazzy saxophone and guitar. The tone colours complement the harmonies, that vacillate between agreeable cadences and aimless wanderings to shape an affective emotional atmosphere.

On the whole, I find it a really agreeable project. Although it would have been more insightful if the diametric stereotyping of voices (the “sacred voices” of the operatic singers versus the “profane voices” of the pop singers) has not been imposed, the marriage of the two genres harkens a most interestingly new direction at the crossroads where the death of classical music and the inconsequence of pop music meet.