Pianist-conductor Vladimir Ashkenazy, one of the most prominent and beloved legends in the classical-music world, returned to Bangkok last week with his pianist-son, Vovka Ashkenazy. The father and son have been travelling and performing together, and they made a quick stop in Bangkok to give a successful two-piano recital at Thailand Culture Centre. The father Ashkenazy, 79, was here a few decades ago to perform a solo recital at the AUA auditorium. (The building no longer exists, but the story of that remarkable recital is well-remembered.)
At their latest recital, the foyer of Thailand Cultural Centre had such a festive and cheerful atmosphere filled with many music enthusiasts, expats, piano teachers of many generations and students. It was especially pleasing to see many young pianists excitedly attending the concert. This confirms how vibrant the classical-piano scene in Bangkok is, and how live music by great artists still meets with strong demand here.
The programme included transcriptions of four orchestral pieces for two pianos from the 19th and early 20th centuries — the time when transcriptions and arrangements of orchestral works or other musical genres for one or more pianos were very much in fashion. The two artists performed on two brand-new Steinway grand pianos, with Vladimir on the “first piano” on the left side of the stage while Vovka took the “second piano” on the other side. The second tended to be brighter in the higher register while the first had a deeper low register. However, for the acoustic purpose, the lid of the second piano was removed to give an overall beautiful balancing outcome.
The two Ashkenazys, humble and gracious, delivered their performance with great spirit. They exhibited various dimensions of sounds, shades of colours, tones and touch. The performance started with Glinka’s Valse-Fantasie, arranged from the orchestra’s original score by Sergei Lyapunov and Vovka Ashkenazy. It was wonderful to see the musical communication between father and son in this piece. The subtlety of harmonic exchange throughout was artistically captivating, with maestro Vladimir bringing out a striking chromatic inner voice.
This programme was followed by The Molda, transcribed for two pianos by Smetana himself. The way both pianists delivered and planned musical direction towards the climax kept the audience’s attention captured throughout. It was amazing that sometimes you were able to identify easily which line came from which piano but at other times the intricate pattern’s pieces were indistinguishable. The art of choosing just the right tempo was another strength on display during the performance. Neither musicians succumbed to exaggeration or overstatement.
Ravel’s Rhapsodie Espagnole was most striking. As a composer, besides his other significant piano pieces, Ravel was a very keen arranger, and he arranged his own original orchestral work and transcribed that of other composers. The two Ashkenazys delivered every intricate layer and dimension of sound with great clarity. In Ravel’s own words, the spirit of Spanish music is unique, and it was delivered here with artistic skill balanced by emotional control. The Malagueña, Spanish folk-dancing rhythm, was vibrant in all its abrupt colour changes.
The second half of the program featured Rachmaninov’s Symphonic Dances arranged, for two pianos. While clearly enjoying themselves, the two Ashkenazy had so many gifts to offer their audiences. The successful performance was followed by many curtain calls, the Ashkenazy duo finally returning their appreciation with a fresh and beautiful lyrical encore. After the concert, they were generous with their time, signing autographs and taking pictures with cued audience members.
This source first appeared on Bangkok Post Lifestyle.