October 3, 2021
streamed video only
Presented by Spivey Hall, Morrow, GA, via OurConcerts.live
Sheku Kanneh-Mason, cello; Isata Kanneh-Mason, piano.
BRIDGE: Cello Sonata in D minor, H. 125
RACHMANINOFF: “Muza” & “Ne mozhet byt′!” from 14 Romances, Op. 34 (Nos. 1 & 7)
BRIDGE: Spring Song, H. 104, No. 2
BRIDGE: Mélodie for Cello and Piano in C-sharp minor, H. 99
BRIDGE: Scherzo, H. 19a
BRITTEN: Cello Sonata, Op. 65
(Reviewed via internet stream.)
Giorgio Koukl | 5 OCT 2021
On October 3, 2021, brother and sister cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason and pianist Isata Kanneh-Mason performed an almost-all-British recital in a virtual-only format presented by Spivey Hall.
With only the exception of two brief transcriptions of songs by Sergei Rachmaninoff, the rest of the recital dominated by an elegant choice of cello sonatas and short works by Frank Bridge and his student Benjamin Britten.
The program opened with two-movement Cello Sonata in D minor of Frank Bridge (1879-1941), written between 1913 and 1917. Its general concept indicates a slow shift from the quasi-romantic, Edwardian style of young Bridge (partially imposed by his teacher Charles Villiers Stanford) towards the more complex, quasi bi-tonal, and poly-rhythmic style in which the mature Bridge finally found his original voice.
The irony of destiny was that Bridge was considered mainly a good violist and an excellent conductor but was far less known for his compositional abilities. It was only after his fortunate encounter with the well-known American mecenate Elisabeth Sprague Coolidge, who financed his compositional work, that Bridge was able to dedicate himself freely to composition. Yet even today, he is known far more for the tonal works of his youth than for his mature period compositions.
The young artists started this musically very enigmatic and difficult piece with energy and enthusiasm. Their awkward position, practically without the ability to see each other, was probably due to the restricted space of their flat in Nottingham, where they recorded this concert. Nonetheless, from the very beginning, it was clear that they were accustomed to playing together. Sheku’s cello sound was not very impressive, despite his noteworthy capacity for dramatic development and a certain sense for feeling this music. He is fundamentally a natural-born musician, which nobody will ever take away from him. Sometimes lacking, however, is the finesse and experience necessary for the slow movements, where he is definitely not so much at his ease.
It is far more challenging to evaluate his sister, Isata. She has very good technique, extremely long fingers, and a certain dramatic sense which she shares with her brother. But playing on a less than good piano, with very few fine details recorded on this video, I couldn’t assess her musical abilities fully. I wished to listen to them in an actual concert hall, with an excellent grand piano and professional recording.
Two short pieces for voice and piano by Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873-1943) followed, transcribed by the artists themselves. From Fourteen Romances, Op. 34, these were No. 1, “Muza” (“The Muse”), and No. 7, “Ne mozhet byt!” (“It cannot be!”).
While the idea of transcribing a voice part for cello is not new and is per se a good idea, here I didn’t understand the necessity to insert less than five minutes of music in an otherwise fully British, dramaturgically perfect concert program. But the melodies were lovely, so no further objection.
After the Rachmaninoff came three short pieces by Frank Bridge. Once again, it was a pleasure to admire the overflowing young energy of the cellist. Only occasionally, I had some concern about the not-so-perfect intonation.
The final work on the program was Britten’s Cello Sonata, Op. 65.
Benjamin Britten (1913-1976) wrote his Cello Sonata relatively late, in 1961, after listening to a concert at the Royal Festival Hall in London of the famous Russian cellist Mstislav Rostropovich. The Russian composer Dmitri Shostakovitch arranged for Britten to meet with Rostropovich. Britten was so electrified by the cello playing of Rostro, as he liked to be called by friends, that he asked directly for permission to write a sonata, which Rostropovich gave him. The first performance took place at the Aldeburgh Festival on July 7, 1961.
This five movements work has a complicated structure and certainly is not an immediate public pleaser. Its inner force depends massively on the precise interpretative capacities of both cellist and pianist, with the pianist being not a mere accompanist but a rightfully equal partner. The interplay, especially in the first movement, requires a rhythmic precision without which the piece has not enough expressive power to enjoy thoroughly.
I liked the second, entirely pizzicato movement, which the cellist played with breathtaking ability; also the fourth one, in which Britten imitates a heavy, ironic march reminiscent of Prokofiev.
But the first movement lacked precision, was uninspired. Both cellist and pianist seemed not to know what to do. Please try to listen to other easily accessible renderings – that of Sol Gabetta to cite only one. Twentieth-century music needs a lot of knowledge to be played perfectly.
Generally speaking, Sheku Kanneh-Mason has musicality in abundance. He is a cellist with great potential, some parts of it still to be developed. ■
Giorgio Koukl is a Czech-born pianist/harpsichordist and composer who resides in Lugano, Switzerland. Among his many recordings are the complete solo piano works and complete piano concertos of Bohuslav Martinů on the Naxos label. He has also recorded the piano music of Tansman, Lutosławski, Kapralova, and A. Tcherepnin, amongst others, for the Grand Piano label. Koukl has most recently completed recording the solo piano music of Hungarian composer Tibor Harsányi.
(photo: Chiara Solari)
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