Jun 14, 2022 Robert-Schumann-Saal, Dusseldorf
Alexandre Kantorow Piano Recital
Bach-Liszt: Weinen, Klagen, Sorgen, Zagen
Schumann: Piano Sonata No.1
Liszt: Petrarch Sonnett 104, Abschied, La lugubre Gondola II, Dante Sonata
Scriabin: Vers la flame
Encores:
Gluck-Sgambati: Dance of the Blessed Spirits
Stravinsky-Agosti: Firebird Finale
(scroll down for English review)
過來杜塞爾多夫過一晚，是為了聽皮莉斯的獨奏會，但演出前兩星期收到主辦者電郵，她因病辭演。主辦者魯爾鋼琴節是當今最好的鋼琴節，頂替者是2019年柴可夫斯基大賽冠軍康特洛夫，見到曲目不錯，以前又評論他的錄音，也就無謂轉行程，照樣聽吧。
他贏得柴可夫斯基大賽前，本已在李斯特花了不少工夫，而舒曼則和杜塞爾多夫有關，或者就是他選彈舒曼《第一鋼琴奏鳴曲》的原因，表演場地正是叫舒曼大廳，是個容納六、七百人的中型場地，說這是中型，因為假如座位沒放這麼疏，隨時放到一千座。
康特洛夫在那屆柴可夫斯基大賽，贏得頗為乾淨俐落，只是疫情打斷了他在賽後的發展。我覺得他身為法國鋼琴家，又在法國學琴，在力量及觸鍵上可能較接近俄羅斯鋼琴家。我頗為欣賞他的發音很到木／到肉，要把旋律清楚彈出來，較大的和弦也很爆炸，但想聽圓滑、沒有槌聲的朋友未必滿意。之前讀到反田恭平（出爐的蕭邦賽第二）提到他聽過馬祖耶夫的霹靂琴音後，便知道一定要去改善手力，後天做到幾多得幾多。聽過康特洛夫的現場，令我想起反田的觀察，也令我想到，鋼琴學生反來覆去練拉赫曼尼諾夫、李斯特、拉威爾那些比賽曲目，但要是不夠力都是多餘。
我也覺得康特洛夫的技術紥實，令他可以毋須使用太別扭的詮釋，表面上彈得規規矩矩，其實已做到相當的彈性及變化。聽他彈炫技曲目，是難得的順耳，因他總是能把繁複的彈得細緻，容易被淹沒的旋律或聲部，他又能夠突出。話雖如此，我不排除這個場地的殘響非常恰到好處，為他的演出加分。在香港聽鋼琴獨奏，其實很難聽得出真貌，普遍來說都是殘響不足，港大李兆基大講堂算是近磅了，但還是未到理想。有可能香港人聽慣了乾，會誤以為殘響夠的琴音是不乾淨。
I made this detour to Dusseldorf solely for a Maria João Pires recital. But Pires pulled out two weeks ago, and the promoter Klavier-Festival Ruhr replaced her with a 25-year-old newcomer, Alexandre Kantorow, winner of the 2019 Tchaikovsky Competition. His programme, Liszt and Schumann, looked very interesting so I decided to hear this.
In many sense the young Frenchman was more akin to the Russian School in his sound production. Chords were shattering and the notes of a melody were often punched out. To me this is well-articulated but some, who expected to hear pearly tones, might be horrified. I believe his solid technique was the reason why the torrents of notes never sounded messy or noisy. Figurations were clear and clean, so they wouldn’t sound intruding. Less endowed melodies or voices were easily detected because of the articulation. As a consequence, Kantorow had no need for overt interpretations as he could manage enough nuances within a steady rhythm.
The venue is the Robert-Schumann-Saal in the Kunsthaus. It seats around 600, but could have welcomed 1000 listeners if the seats were reconfigured in the lines of a conventional concert hall. It was also a very resonant hall but the notes would never tangle. That’s why I’d like to see Kantorow again in another city to see how much of tonight’s wonderful concert was due to his efforts.