Pianists Gülru Ensari and Herbert Schuch play a selection of Baroque, classical and modern works for piano duet. Their programme begins with J.S. Bach’s Passacaglia and Fugue in C minor, BWV 582, an influential work that was originally written for the organ; Schumann described the variations in it as ‘intertwined so ingeniously that one can never cease to be amazed’. It then continues with W.A. Mozart’s Sonata in D major for Two Pianos, K 381, described (in an unsigned article on the ‘Musopen’ website) as ‘a captivating musical composition … With its lively and energetic nature, this piece is a prime example of Mozart’s ability to create music that not only delights the senses but also transports the listener into a world full of joyful melodies.’
The duo then performs two works by French composers: Scaramouche, a three-movement suite that was written in 1937 in a polyphonal idiom by Darius Milhaud (1892-1974), a Jewish composer, conductor and renowned teacher whose pupils included Burt Bacharach, Dave Brubeck, Philip Glass and Steve Reich; and La Valse by Maurice Ravel (1875-1937). The composer George Benjamin said the following about this latter work: ‘Whether or not it was intended as a metaphor for the predicament of European civilization in the aftermath of the Great War, its one-movement design plots the birth, decay and destruction of a musical genre: the waltz.’
In the second half, the Gülru Ensari and Herbert Schuch will first perform Schubert’s 1828 Fantasia in F minor, D 940, described as ‘one of his most important works for piano’ and as ‘among not only his greatest but his most original’ compositions for piano duet. They will then play Ravel’s Bolero in an arrangement by the composer himself. This work, originally written as ballet music, created a sensation when it was first performed in Paris in 1928 with choreography by Bronislava Nijinska. Remarkably, Ravel did not have high hopes for Bolero, which subsequently became by far his most popular creation: in fact, he was afraid that the orchestra would refuse to play it. Wikipedia tells us the following: ‘According to a possibly apocryphal story from the premiere performance, a woman was heard shouting that Ravel was mad. When told about this, Ravel is said to have remarked that she had understood the piece.’
Issue 67, December 2024
Beauty in the Wilderness
