Beethoven/Scharwenka: Complete Symphonies, Vol. 1 - 2021
The Sunday Times listed this disc under “The best classical albums to listen to next”. Paul Driver wrote about the Eroica Symphony: “splendidly put across… a drivenness and gloriousness that seem to define what a musical argument might be”.
International Piano Magazine (September 2021) included a review by Ates Orga: “In the discerning South African hands of Tessa Uys and Ben Schoeman, events tower in scale and sonority, leading to a focused, resplendently noble and toughly argued reading. The results are decidedly fin-de-siècle, complete with massive ‘iron frame’ climaxes, a splendidly organic first movement coda, voiced ‘horns’ in the scherzo’s trio, a Brucknerian finale andante and cadences cleansed of spurious ritardandos. Debussy’s 1891 two-piano adaptation of Schumann’s Studies in Canonic Form provide a lyrical, mesmerising filler”.
In the October 2021-edition of the BBC Music Magazine, the album received 4 stars and was praised by reviewer Julian Haylock: “celebrated duo team Tessa Uys and Ben Schoeman have released the first in a series of six discs featuring Scharwenka’s piano duet arrangements of all nine Beethoven’s symphonies, dating (according to Robert Matthew-Walker’s exemplary annotations) from between 1905 and 1907… So ingenious is Scharwenka’s four-hand adaptation of the mighty Eroica that while listening to this absorbing performance one is persuaded to forget almost entirely the orchestral original … I was reminded on more than one occasion of Otto Klemperer’s structural integrity and unflinching tonal focus … played affectionately as here, with a velvet touch as though the music were emerging through a shimmering heat haze, the effect is utterly beguiling. I look forward to the next instalment in the series with keen anticipation”.
Jeremy Nicholas from Gramophone Magazine (October 2021) wrote: “what intrigued – and indeed, entertained – me was how authentically pianistic the Eroica sounds as a piano duet. Hard to tell, for the most part, that it wasn’t originally conceived as a keyboard work … As to the performances, the South African-born duo have been playing together since 2010 and – more importantly – the complete cycle of the Beethoven-Scharwenka symphonies since 2015. And it shows. The mastery of their part-playing (some of which emerges with greater clarity than on many orchestral recordings) and complete conviction matched the depth of texture that Scharwenka’s four hands conjure up … I eagerly look forward to hearing the other planned eight symphonies”.
Further online reviews
Also see this review by Colin Clarke on the website Classical Explorer.
and this review by Jonathan Welsh:
Ludwig van BEETHOVEN (1770-1827)
Symphony No. 3 in E flat major Op. 55 ‘Eroica’ (arr. piano duo, Franz Xaver Scharwenka) [51:50]
Robert SCHUMANN (1810-1856)
Sechs Stücke in kanonischer Form Op. 56 (arr. piano duo, Claude Debussy) [16:27]
Tessa Uys, Ben Schoeman (piano duo)
rec. The Menuhin Hall, Stoke d’Abernon, Surrey, UK, 24-25 August 2020
SOMM SOMMCD0637 [68:26]
I am on record as a fan of transcriptions, especially large orchestral works in versions for piano or piano duo. I am also an enthusiast of the rather neglected composer Franz Scharwenka, the transcriber here – another reason for wanting to review this disc. This is the first recording of Scharwenka’s version. Of his other two-pianist versions of Beethoven’s symphonies, the Seventh was released in 2014 by Duo Trenkner/Speidel on MDG Gold; it will be an interesting comparison when this duo have recorded it.
Beethoven’s Third has been arranged many times for various forces. Just over 100 years after it was originally written, Franz Scharwenka published his arrangement for piano duo. It is not a “workmanlike” transcription. The uncompromisingly difficult piano writing throughout is clearly meant for two virtuosi.
The first movement Allegro con brio, with its loud proclamation, starts off with a shock. From the outset, the writing is a superb emulation of the orchestral textures transferred to twenty fingers. Scharwenka was not afraid to use different registers in his effort to turn an orchestral work into a piano duet. Tremolandos may be a lazy solution in a transcription, but here so much is going on besides that their astute use makes perfect sense. The work develops organically from the opening. It goes through a number of transformations and key changes, often with unexpected interjections and modulations. For example, it is fascinating to follow the quasi-fugal passages around eight minutes in, perhaps easier to hear than in the full orchestral version. More restrained moments are brilliantly handled and, when the music requires it, the jollity is obvious. The pianists clearly enjoy working together and making a super noise! This is marvellous stuff.
The Funeral march is no less incredible. There is a palpable sense of sadness but the underlying heroic undercurrent also comes across splendidly. Again, the orchestral textures are finely realised for piano duo. The performance is magnificently judged, the timing is spot on, and the muffled funereal music from start is very melancholic but not depressing. This slowly evolves and, as the work develops, the atmosphere lightens. Around four-and-a-half minutes in, a more reflective and rather beautiful middle section emerges from the gloom. The ongoing sense of melancholy alternates with the powerful outbursts from both pianists. The strong centre at 6:15-6:36 is handled very well, and the increasingly agitated sadness that returns afterwards works gorgeously. After this fizzles out, there are strange harmonic departures as the music once more grows in strength, with outbursts of trills and a sort of fugal passage. After this loud, impassioned section, shadowy hints of the opening return only to be supplanted by some wonderfully powerful music from about 9:30. This slowly quietens and the movement returns to the march-like opening music before cheering up. The last moments are an evolution of what has been heard previously. The piece ends quietly and sadly but with hints of a resolution. It is all very evocatively played.
In the utterly bonkers Scherzo, Beethoven’s treacherous passages for the horns, transferred cleanly to the piano, are fully intact and sound just as difficult for the pianists as they do for the horns in the original version. The interesting high-up chords at about 1:10 are a pleasant surprise, clearer than their orchestral equivalent. Despite the difficulties, the pianists rocket up and down the keyboards in thirds. The more relaxed central trio, with its bucolic nature, also works exquisitely. There is a palpable sense of wanting to rush on back to crazy skittish music. Tempo, perfectly judged, is marginally faster than the average timing for the orchestral version. I love it how the opening theme re-emerges from the ending of the Trio and bounces off to a cheerful, manic conclusion.
The Allegro molto finale is great, in particular the variations on the theme from Beethoven’s ballet The Creatures of Prometheus. After the loud opening, the skeleton of the tune starts up and is gradually fleshed out. All of the myriad complexities of the piece show up magnificently. The overall atmosphere one is rather cheerful: this music certainly makes you smile. As elsewhere, the idea of the orchestra is conveyed delightfully as the music is thoughtfully and cleverly arranged for this medium. With headphones on, it is also easy to determine which pianist is doing what: the passages where one pianist is chasing the other (for example at about 1:30) sound splendid! The main theme is slowly mutated through various guises and clever harmonic shifts – a masterly arrangement. The more subdued passages in the central part (again fugal in nature) work especially well here as the theme is pinged from one pianist to the other. The calm passage at 7:00-8:30 slowly winds up the tension to the very powerful statement of the main theme. This is deftly handled, and the next part, where a more relaxed passage emerges, is equally noteworthy. This relaxed Poco andante section does not last long. The work ends in a blaze of powerful writing for both pianists (or full orchestra, marked Presto), a life-affirming blast of power and jollity.
This transcription is rife with difficulties, but the performers are well up to the challenge. They do an utterly superb job with the piece. The tempo throughout all four movements is well judged and the timing is close to that for a standard orchestral version of the work; that, to my ears, is always a good thing. The innumerable details, key changes and clever harmonic shifts are captured perfectly by the arranger. Sometimes he even adds to the fun by changing tiny details to make the work more pianistic. I cannot envisage a better performance of this work, and I would love to hear it live in concert some day.
The remainder of this disc is taken up by Debussy’s arrangement of Schumann’s Six Studies in Canonic Form, originally for pedal piano, published as Op.56. Even by Debussy’s time, that instrument had fallen out of favour. This was perhaps the impetus to arrange this fascinating set of pieces for two pianos.
The first piece sounds like a refugee from Bach’s output. The interlaced textures ripple elegantly between the pianists, and the sprightly theme with its attendant trills is really rather jolly. The tempo direction is “not too fast”, and here the pacing is perfect. The second piece is a different kettle of fish altogether. Again it sounds Bachian but the atmosphere, at least to begin with, is much sadder and more reflective. The third piece is perhaps more distinctive Schumann; a rather catchy and infectious tune bounces around happily with some lovely accompaniment. The piece marked Innig (heartfelt or intimate) has some lovely bell-like effects at the opening which continue throughout. It may not be particularly heartfelt but it certainly is passionate, and it manages to pack an awful lot of happiness in its three minutes. The penultimate piece is cheerful and more jumpy – more “Florestan” than “Eusabius”. The pianists react to each other’s every whim, and the end result is wonderful. The sixth piece is a more restrained Adagio, with Bach-like harmonies and clever harmonic inventions. This is fine music.I hope that the recording helps to publicise how good it is! Debussy certainly knew how to arrange these works: they sound far better in this version than the performances I have heard on the organ.
I was blown away by this magnificent recording. The sound is fabulous, the cover notes informative and the playing exemplary. Full marks to all concerned. I am waiting impatiently for the next volume.
Beethoven/Scharwenka: Complete Symphonies, Vol. 2 - 2023
Reviews
Malcolm Hayes in BBC Music Magazine:
Before modern recordings made the sound of an orchestra a routine part of home listening, there was a huge appetite for piano arrangements of the symphonies of Beethoven and others. Franz-Xaver Scharwenka’s fine transcription of the Fifth Symphony dates from early in the 20th century, and was therefore devised for the kind of modern concert grand or home upright piano that’s familiar today.
The challenge for those pianists playing an arrangement of this kind is to convey the sonic and rhythmic firepower that must have so astonished the music’s first audiences two centuries ago, while avoiding eardrum-bruising overkill in the process. Tessa Uys and Ben Schoeman excellently square this circle, finding some specially beguiling sounds in the Andante con moto slow movement.
The players then switch to two pianos in the other two works. Saint-Saëns’s Variations on a Theme of Beethoven (the theme being from the Piano Sonata, Op. 31 No. 3) … a scintillating listening experience. And Schumann’s Andante and Variations in B flat, while offering no evident connection with Beethoven, is a warmly imaginative creation that more than deserves its unlikely place here. In terms both of precise co-ordination and engaging interplay, the performances are state-of-the-art.
https://www.classical-music.com/reviews/instrumental/beethoven-symphonies-vol-2/
Jeremy Nicholas in Gramophone Magazine:
Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony arranged for piano duet by Xaver Scharwenka (1850-1924) is a premiere recording. When I welcomed Vol 1 (with the Beethoven-Scharwenka Eroica, A/21), I described it as ‘no workaday in-house arrangement’ but ‘ingeniously and handsomely voiced … the skilled work of a master’. The same pertains here. And, as with Symphony No 3, one wonders if the mighty Fifth Symphony of Ludwig van can really come off in this reduced, domestic medium. Once more, one’s initial resistance quickly evaporates. What the listener is presented with is a thoroughly rewarding, often revelatory view of this over-played and over-recorded masterpiece, one that might well send you back to a recording of the original remarking ‘well, I’ve never noticed that before’. Uys and Schoeman use a Fazioli F278 in the Menuhin Hall at Stoke d’Abernon with a big, sonorous tone providing added heft to Scharwenka’s richly voiced score.
After the fire and thunderbolts comes the intimacy of Schumann’s Andante and Variations in B flat, Op 46, originally scored for two pianos, two cellos and horn. Robert Matthew-Walker’s excellent booklet tells us that it was Mendelssohn who persuaded Schumann to produce a version for two pianos. The two in question are a couple of Steinway Model Ds heard in a perfectly voiced match: it’s impossible to tell when Piano 1 takes over from Piano 2 when the music is in question-and-answer mode or simply repeating a phrase. I don’t think I’ve ever heard the second variation played more beautifully – one of those pages of quintessential Schumann that, like the Intermezzo from Faschingsschwank aus Wien, tears at your heart-strings and won’t leave your head for days.
Saint-Saëns’s Op 35 (a homage to Beethoven’s Variations and Fugue, Op 35) is based on the Trio of the Minuet from Beethoven’s Sonata in E flat, Op 31 No 3, a glittering entertainment of mischievous co-ordination challenges for the two pianists, with lively, humorous interplay and topped by a clever fugue. Uys, who has been primo for the Beethoven and Schumann, swaps to secondo for another performance with Schoeman that ranks among the best I’ve heard of the piece, the kind that can only be achieved by long association. All this is enhanced by the notably cushioned warmth of the sound engineering. Vol 3, please!
Jonathan Welsh on MusicWeb-International:
Hot on the heels of the first volume of this enterprising series comes volume 2, this time including what is perhaps the most famous symphony of all time, Beethoven’s 5th, here given its world premiere recording in the transcription for piano duet by Franz Xaver Scharwenka.
As with the previous volume and the “Eroica”, the 5th needs no introduction or apologies, and Scharwenka expects both pianists to be virtuosi. The opening chords are surprisingly not written for double octaves as might have been expected; Scharwenka saves those for later on when even more firepower is required. Again, throughout this transcription, multiple solutions are offered to deal with the problem of arranging a work for full orchestra for piano and all is superbly realised by the duo. The opening tempo for the first movement is perhaps a little slower than expected at the start but that is more than made up for later as both pianists flamboyantly navigate the complex writing. Also, as before, the notation is subtly arranged to make it playable on two pianos and this has the added bonus of making some detail clearer than in the orchestral version.
The second movement comes across very well too – all the details are present and presented via the medium of twenty fingers. The contrasts are beautifully pointed out: a sense of calm serenity pervades this music, and the pianists respond excellently to the challenge. The rippling accompaniment starting at 2:39 – but also occurring elsewhere – is cleverly written and perfectly judged. There are some surprises here too; harmonies are clarified and details that perhaps would normally be lost are brought to the fore. Both pianists make a superb job of this movement, and it contains just as much drama as a performance for full orchestra. The fortissimo sections make an excellent contrast to the nervier and quieter moments and the ending of the movement, with its defiant chords, is splendid.
The Scherzo follows with its weird march like chords and repeated loud interruptions, all of which are again played with aplomb. The crazy scrambling section from about two minutes onwards sounds just perfect and the cunning interjections by the second pianist (I presume) that ultimately derail this trail of music are wittily done. The build up to the cheerful, blazing finale is excellently judged and that final ‘Allegro’ part starts with a bang, with bagfuls of virtuosity from both participants and continues in the same vein. There are lots of powerful tremolandos here, judiciously used and all of which add to the drama. The build up to the quieter section at about five minutes is excellently controlled and sounds absolutely right. The ending where Beethoven applies the brakes to the music before restarting again with renewed vigour is miraculously realised – listen out for the notes originally on the flutes in the last two minutes sounding almost woodwind-like but on a piano. The ending with sustained loud and powerful virtuosity from both performers is just brilliant. This is an awesome performance of a magnificent transcription…
In a well-thought-through contrast to the blazing conclusion of the Beethoven transcription, Schumann’s rarely heard variations published as Op. 46b follows next on this disc. This work exists in two versions – it was originally written for two pianos, two cellos and a horn but following a suggestion from Mendelssohn, Schumann later revised for just two pianos as heard here. These open quietly with a rather lovely slightly melancholy tune that receives a whole gamut of variation from beautifully quiet and reflective ones (heard at the outset of the piece) to bouncy march like ones (as at 4’50’’) and all points in between. As with the preceding Beethoven, the playing throughout is very intelligent and the two pianists react well to each other’s playing, producing a result full of musicality. The slower variations are deeply affecting and the quasi-funeral march one at about six minutes is especially good; the way it segues into the following faintly sad variation is perfectly handled. Schumann was, as usual, channelling his inner Florestan and Eusebius in the composition of this work but there is perhaps a slight preference for the latter, as overall the work has a dreamy and melancholy mood. Surprisingly, towards the end of the piece, Schumann brings back the opening theme completely unadorned, and uses it to generate a suitably fitting conclusion to this wonderful piece. I have to say that prior to hearing this recording I was only dimly aware of this work but on repeated listening, I have really grown to appreciate its many wonderful turns of phrase and clever writing.
The disc concludes with Saint-Saëns’ epic variations on a theme by Beethoven. As I have said before, this is a work that I have previously had issues with; I have no idea why, but it just doesn’t strike me as the composers’ best work, and it has always seemed a little laboured. However, I should say that a previous recording that I reviewed (here) changed my view and I am now much fonder of the piece. The opening is mysterious and only hints at the theme which he uses (from the Trio of the Scherzo from Beethoven’s E flat Op.31 no. 3 Sonata – sometimes nicknamed “The Hunt”) but once the theme emerges, it is subjected to ten contrasted variations including a complex, virtuosic fugue. The opening variation is a scurrying, “catch me if you can” treatment of the theme in scales and is here played very fast, with plenty of wit and character. The following variation is a complete contrast: a rather lovely lyrical treatment of the theme with some clever darker episodes and throughout some nice examples of the pianists bouncing off one another to create a spontaneous atmosphere. Thirdly, a strange inverted version of the theme; again, the Scherzo like character here is abundantly obvious and the playing is excellent. Variation 4 is extremely entertaining: bouncy repeated chords and much interaction between the pianists who again spark well off each other. Variation 5 is again a change of pace and the difference from the previous one is very marked. Here, trills and some very pretty playing join to make a splendid little creation with plenty of harmonic invention and humour. We return to scales for the following variation, with some added arpeggios for good measure. I particularly like the way the ends of phrases are rounded off here – this is a most astute and intelligent performance. I especially enjoyed the mock funeral march that is variation 7; this is just weird in comparison to the other, more conventional variations here – the playing is almost hysterical with grief and matches the mood of this variation perfectly. As the work progresses into variation 8, it becomes more and more difficult to follow the progress of the variations, but we have a restatement of the spectral opening that gradually evolves to the complex fugue that is variation 9. This is the core of the work and is perhaps the composer’s reaction to Beethoven’s Eroica variations (Op. 35). Here, there are plenty of notes for both performers to negotiate and they do so with the same high level of virtuosity and commitment that they display throughout this disc. This is such a witty take on the theme and to my ears the way that the textures are handled hints at the Scharwenka transcription from earlier in the disc and thus fits in very well here. This variation leads directly into variation 10, the conclusion of the work and featuring the tune neatly divided between the two performers who give a sparkling performance. Right at the very end, the theme emerges almost unadorned as if to remind us how far the music has travelled during the progress of this marvellous work.
As I said for Volume 1, this is a magnificent recording; the sound quality is superb, the cover notes are excellent, and the playing is exemplary throughout. Full marks to all concerned; I am once again waiting impatiently for the next volume.
http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2022/Jul/Beethoven-sym5-SOMMCD0650.htm
Ben Schoeman excels with challenging programme – 2017
Marlborough News Online
Ben is passionate about Russian music and this formed the basis of his programme this evening. He began with Prokofiev’s Sonata No 3, on of a series of short sonatas which were written in 1917 reflecting the post-revolutionary optimism that was exploding in Russia. It is full of force and grandeur, with sections which remind the listener of clanking machinery and the whole panoply of the brave new world of the Soviet worker. It is a powerful piece, skilfully executed and rich in contrasting mood. There are moments of lyricism, but the overall impression of ruthless energy and a thundering cacophony of dissonances was a superb evocation of the now-vanished Soviet Age.
Scriabin’s Preludes (Opus 11) were written between 1888 and 1896, in the golden age of Russian Romanticism. Ben played a diverse and contrasting selection of nine of these. Many were gently rippling, light and wistful, with faint memories of Chopin in the air, while others are much darker, Russian Romanticism in full flight. There were preludes in a wide range of keys, both major and minor and their brevity enabled Ben to explore very successfully the variety of mood and technique that they demand.
The first half finished with Rachmaninoff’s wonderful Variations on a Theme of Corelli, written in 1932 while the composer was living in Switzerland. The basic theme is a catchy little popular folk melody called ‘La Folia’ which was the source of inspiration to a large number of Baroque composers, including Corelli. Written at much the same time as the more famous Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini there are many stylistic similarities which were not difficult to spot. There is a wide range of moods and technical skill reflected in these variations, two of which are at breakneck speed with furious rhythms thundered out in the left hand. At one point a repeating note sounded like a bell tolling above the cacophony of notes. Other variations are languid and thoughtful. Indeed it is one of the gentle variations with which the work finishes, with Ben reducing the volume to a point where music and time were one, soloist absolutely motionless as a deep silence reigned over Saint Peter’s. What a performance.
The work finished with another great Rachmaninoff Sonata; no 2 in B flat Minor. This was a version reworked in 1931 from a sonata originally written in 1913. (Allegedly a simplified version!) Like the Corelli Variations the work is dark, brooding and very Russian. Perhaps it reflects the coming storm of WW1 and the Russian Revolution from which Rachmaninoff eventually fled, never to see his homeland again. The work is technically very challenging indeed, fiendish runs and scales, out of which periodically there are echoes of the rich and deep sonorities associated with the Orthodox tradition, while at other moments there are hints of the pealing bells of the great Russian cathedrals; images dear to the heart of the refugee composer. It was a virtuoso performance; one of immense craftsmanship and subtle interpretation, ample evidence of Ben’s empathy with Russian music. To bring us all back to earth (and to the south!) Ben played some Scarlatti, playful, gentle and emotionally unchallenging. Just what we needed!
It was a wonderful concert made all the more memorable by Ben’s introductory and very enlightening remarks at the beginning of each half. We hope he will return.
A freshness that keeps radiating – 2015 {Afrikaans}
Kom ons ruim enkele misvattings uit die weg: Musici wat op die vlak van Anzél Gerber en Ben Schoeman internasionaal konserte aanbied het nagenoeg 16 jaar se studie agter die rug om dié peil van voortreflikheid te kan bereik. Hierna hou die proses geensins op nie. Repertoriumuitbreiding bly uitdagend en veral spesialisering in spesifieke rigtings vereis selfs nog meer. Vergelyk dit gerus met dié van ander hoëvlakberoepe. Selfs met dit alles in ag genome, bly dié duo nou nog meer as tevore só in staat om hul gehore deurgaans by hul interpretasies te betrek, dat dit ‘n nuutgemunte varsheid bly uitstraal. Hier is dit skaars ‘n geval waar die luisteraar sou kon dink “ek ken dié Beethoven-sonate deur en deur,” want Gerber en Schoeman benader en belig die wesenskenmerke daarvan uit ‘n ietwat ander hoek om dan ‘n verrassende, opskerpende resultaat te kan lewer. Dit was die geval met hul openingswerk, Beethoven se Sonate no.4 in C, opus 102, no.1 (1815). Teen dié tyd was die komponis totaal doof, maar sy behandeling van die twee stemme (tjello en klavier) is wonderbaarlik geïntegreer. In hul onopgesmukte klankbenadering, aangevul deur uitdrukkingsryke frasering, met uitmuntende vibratobeheer en – kontraste deur Gerber, deel die musiek – soms gekompliseerd, enkele kere ook weerbarstig – voortdurend iets mee. Die dialoog het naatloos gesluit, met spel gekenmerk deur ‘n ideale, gelykluidende twee-eenheid.
Schoeman het hom onlangs as ‘n deurleefde Schumann-eksponent begin bewys. Dit was dus g’n verrassing dat hy en Gerber se uitvoering van Schumann se Adagio en Allegro, opus 70 ideaal vorm aangeneem het nie, met laasgenoemde se elastiese klankdinamiek, ryklik soepele strykwerk en speelse musikaliteit. Dit maak haar in gelyke mate één met haar tjello as ‘n sangeres met haar stem: lig, deurdag en vloeiend.
Ten slotte was dit Chopin se Sonate in g, opus 65, wat deurlopend nog verdere kwaliteite van dié duo onderstreep het. Die werk se struktuur is heg gehou deur geen oormatige uitdrukkingsvryhede in hul benadering toe te laat nie. ‘n Onthullende hoogtepunt hier was veral die verrassende liriese ontlading van die Scherzo en die diepgaande sfeer van die Largo wat kernagtig by die betoog in sy geheel aangepas het.
Review of KZNPO Concert - 2015
Blog Review: http://news.artsmart.co.za/2015/06/kznpo-concert-june-18-2015.html
Earlier in the week these South African musicians had delighted a Friends of Music audience with a varied recital programme. With the KZNPO they gave only the second performance of a concerto for cello and piano by the South African composer Stefans Grove, who died recently aged 91 (the world premiere had been given a week earlier in Cape Town). This concerto is sub-titled Bushman Prayers. Grove, who is regarded as one of the most important figures in South African music, researched the spoken and musical traditions of the San (Bushmen), the oldest of Southern Africa’s indigenous peoples, when composing this concerto. Obviously much of it sounds strange to ears attuned to the music of Western Europe, but hearing it was nevertheless an absorbing experience, with the impressionistic Prayer to the Moon the most readily accessible part of the work. The two soloists (to whom the concerto is dedicated) were both excellent¸ and the conductor, Carlos Izcaray, a 37-year-old Venezuelan, guided the orchestra skilfully through this complex work. Barry Carbis narrated the three prayers.
The concert opened with A Johannesburg Overture by Allan Stephenson, who was born in England but has lived in Cape Town since 1973. His substantial musical output includes six geographical compositions, a Cape Town Overture, a Durban, Bloemfontein, Johannesburg, Port Elizabeth and Pretoria overture. The Johannesburg Overture depicts in vivid fashion the bustle of the big city. The City Hall audience was much smaller than usual. Local music does not pull in the customers, it seems.
Dvorak’s Symphony No. 8 in G major took us back to old Europe. Written in 1889, it is a splendid work with a continuous flow of melody (much of it based on Bohemian folk music), all of it brilliantly orchestrated. The performance of this great symphony was a triumph for conductor and orchestra.
Carlos Izcaray, the conductor, has an interesting history. Eleven years ago, when he was the principal cellist of the Venezuela Symphony Orchestra, he was watching a political protest in his home town, Caracas, when he was attacked by the Venezuela National Guard. The protest was against Hugo Chavez, the radical politician who was president of the country until his death two years ago, and whose rule was conspicuous for intolerance, crime and corruption. Izcaray was arrested, thrown into a police van, hit on the head, had a pistol put in his mouth, was given electric shocks, and was tear-gassed. He was eventually released and warned not to complain. He believes that music was the therapy that restored him after this horrifying experience. Not surprisingly, he feels strongly about human rights. He has built a conducting career in the United States and Europe. He recently organised a Concert for Peace and Liberty in Berlin, where he has been living, and he is now moving with his wife and two daughters to Birmingham, Alabama, to become conductor of the orchestra there.
Outstanding recital of cello and piano - 2015
Blog Review: http://news.artsmart.co.za/2015/06/fom-anzel-gerber-ben-schoeman.html
The repertory of music for the cello and piano is somewhat limited, possibly because composers have had to face the problems of tonal balance; the bass notes of the piano can obscure the deep tone of the cello. Predictably enough, Beethoven solved the problems successfully in his five cello sonatas, and the first item on this Durban programme was his Sonata in C major, Op. 102, No. 1, which dates from 1815. Both players excelled in this splendid composition. Their calm and dedicated approach to its complexities and subtleties impressed the large audience, as did their mutual understanding, based on their long-standing musical partnership.This was followed by Benjamin Britten’s Sonata for Cello and Piano, Op. 65, written in 1961.
In the second half of the concert the players moved to the romantic era, with Schumann’s eloquent Adagio and Allegro, Op. 70, and Chopin’s Sonata in G minor, Op. 65. Chopin’s sonata was written in 1846. It is the composer’s last published work and is one of only nine compositions that he did not write for solo piano. It is rather neglected, inexplicably, because it is romantic, melodious, lyrical, passionate and poetic. The performance was beyond reproach. The players extracted full value from the inimitably Chopinesque melody of the dreamy slow movement (it sounds like one of the composer’s Nocturnes) and from the headlong rush of the Finale. Anzel Gerber produced a beautiful tone from her cello, and Ben Schoeman had ample opportunity to display his virtuoso powers in Chopin’s brilliant score.
Dvořák, Tchaikovsky, Saint-Saëns, Grové, Sibelius - 2015
Blog Review: https://andywildingfmr.wordpress.com/2015/06/
The overture began at the heart of the orchestra, with opening winds projecting a tranquil pastoral scene, delivered with the excellent control that extended throughout the orchestra. The climaxes were hair-raising, with all the grandeur and commitment of a medieval Hussite army, charged with goose-fleshy thundering bass drum rumbles, and the accelerando into the coda was exhilarating! After last night’s performance, this may well have become my new favourite overture.
Anzél Gerber’s Tchaikovsky was a delight in its complexity – her dexterous fingers and graceful souring melodies concealing a clearly hard-earned technique within this virtuosic work for cello. And virtuoso was the flavour of the evening… If Saint-Saëns is occasionally overlooked as a great pianist, there was no doubting it after Ben Schoeman’s performance of the Africa fantasy. This highly technical, syncopated work is a juicy challenge for both piano and orchestra. Schoeman rose to that challenge with accuracy and sensitivity, and the orchestra held his syncopated framework together with the kind of wonder that one finds in architectural structures that have much of the load-bearing rhythm removed, and seem to defy possibility.
I enjoyed the “Bushman Prayers” by Stefans Grové more than I expected after hearing his “Figures in the Mist” in October last year, which I found difficult to access. To quote Ben Rabinowitz: “In art we know when we like, but in music we like what we know.” – It’s quite possible that my ear is tuning in to Grové’s extended tonalities and rhythms, or perhaps Aviva Pelham’s passionate delivery of the prayers (poems by Dia!Kwain) helped connect the awkward, hungry, dissonant sounds, particularly in the first movement – Prayer to the Sun. But it was with the second movement that I connected most deeply: Prayer to the Moon. Gerber and Schoeman, to whom the work was dedicated, created a most beautiful, hauntingly mysterious Moon-rise that seemed to hover larger than life, as if we could see every canyon and crater on the Moon’s surface. The work is rhythmically extremely challenging, and well-handled between Shinozaki and the percussion section.
Fine vehicles for a display of virtuosity - 2015
THE wintry chill did not deter concert goers from filling the City Hall for an intriguing programme of two distinct halves: a pre-interval collection of disparate works, ranging from three lesser known works by popular Romantic composers, to the last composition of a notable neo-Classicist who died last year. Dvorák, Tchaikovsky and Saint-Saëns are regularly found in concert programmes the world over; yet there remain a slew of orchestral works by each of them which enjoy far less currency. This is not because of inferior quality: choices are governed by factors such as the length of a work, the forces needed (and thus cost) for its performance, and its suitability in the musical context. Both Tchaikovsky’s cello showpiece and Saint-Saëns’ piano confection suffer from being too short to fill a concerto slot and justify the engagement of a soloist; and, in the case of the Tchaikovsky piece, it is a mite too virtuosic to be assigned to many orchestral cellists. One commends the CTPO for finding a neat solution: by programming a relatively short work that required the engagement of both piano and cello soloists, the opportunity was created to assign to each of those instrumentalists another short solo piece. In the case of the overture, its rarity is more curious, since it does fit ideally into the conventional opening item mould. And, as boldly conducted as Shinozaki did, it’s an appealing work, with a strong melodic interest derived from two Hussite hymns, one being the St Wenceslas Chorale, employed during the piece and used to bring the overtly nationalistic work to a rousing conclusion. It remains a popular Czech hymn and perhaps it is this overt religiosity that makes it less appealing in an increasingly secular world. Tchaikovsky wrote his piece in 1887 for the Russian cellist Anatoly Brandukov, then residing in Paris. As can be expected in a piece written for a Moscow Conservatoire gold medallist, the writing is demanding – particularly in the moto perpetuo D major central episode.
Schoeman then tossed off the “Africa” fantasy with alacrity. It’s a delicious little confection; conceived whilst on a trip to Egypt, the work has obvious references to the exotic sounds of North Africa, although the very prevalent syncopations make it a vehicle for a more widely encountered African music signature. It’s also another vehicle for a display of virtuosity, the often light accompaniment leaving the field open to the soloist to dazzle with a parade of frequently flashy but always exhilarating piano episodes. Schoeman had more than opportunity to create magic with rapid fire broken chords, double octaves, arpeggios, chromatic scales and every other utensil in the cooking battery. Shinozaki and the orchestra scampered along as dutiful cohorts, achieving a neatly precise accompaniment. Marvellous!
The first half ended with Stefan Grové’s Bushman Prayers, a double concerto whose three movements reflect the essence of three poems, each read before its movement: the Sun as the giver of life; the moon, as the constant promise of rebirth; the brightest star as the giver of pinpoint accuracy of the hunt. Grové’s synthesis of Western and African musical elements was an ongoing endeavour for the last 30-odd years [of his life] and, with the admixture of the oral tradition in this score, he might be considered to have achieved something of an apogee. I was intrigued by the work and by the fluent performance it received (with Aviva Pelham a last-minute substitution as reader for the indisposed Rodney Trudgeon.) … the work is undoubtedly atmospheric, a concentrated thesis on each poem, with lovely colouring and idiomatic pulses. The soloists performed with seeming distinction and Shinozaki led the orchestra in a clearly carefully-rehearsed and smoothly delivered performance. The concert ended with a fine account of Sibelius’s first symphony, beautifully conceived by Shinozaki and with fine instrumental contributions – notably by timpanist Muller.
'Bushman Prayers' by S. Grové makes the orchestra sing - 2015 {Afrikaans}
Die eerste helfte van die program het uit nog drie minder gespeelde korter werke bestaan: Dvorák se Hussiet-ouverture, Tsjaikowski se Pezzo Capriccioso vir Tjello en Orkes met Gerber as solis en Saint-Saëns se Afrika-Fantasie met Schoeman as solis. Gerber se mooi tjelloklank in die baie kort Pezzo Capriccioso het getref en ook later haar ratse tegniese vaardigheid. Schoeman het die vinnige dubbeloktawe waarmee die Afrika-Fantasie begin met verbluffende spoed getakel. Dit was net die begin van ’n baie opwindende, virtuose kragtoer.
Gerber, Schoeman present an intelligent programme - 2015 {Afrikaans}
Die eerste helfte het bestaan uit Anton Rubinstein se Tjellosonate in D majeur op. 18 en Benjamin Britten se Sonate op. 65. Rubinstein is ’n groot Russiese komponis, maar sy oeuvre redelik onbekend op ons konsertverhoë. Dit is ’n pragtige werk vol ryk, romantiese melodieë wat albei instrumente ten volle benut. Veral die moderato (2e beweging) met sy Siciliaanse ritme is besonders vertolk.
Die Britten-sonate stel groot eise aan die tjellis. Dit is opgedra aan die Russiese meestertjellis Mstislav Rostropowitsj en geïnspireer deur Sjostakowitsj. Dié uitgebreide werk in vyf bewegings het titels soos Dialogo, Scherzo-pizzicato, Elegia, Marcia en Moto Perpetuo.
In enige Chopin-werk, soos ook Sonate vir Tjello en Klavier, op. 65, is die dilemma altyd hoe om die komponis se Slawiese emosies binne die streng Latynse raamwerk van sy skryfkuns te laat leef. Gerber en Schoeman se interpretasie het die elegante na vore gebring … die uitvoering suksesvol en het groot byval by die publiek gevind.
In die slotwerk, Martinu se Variasies op ’n Tema van Rossini, het albei kunstenaars geskitter en ’n hoogtepunt van kunstenaarskap en tegniese virtuositeit gelewer.
Die kunstenaars is staande toegejuig en het die gehoor met ’n pragtige verwerking van Rubinstein se Rêve Angélique beloon. Dit het reg laat geskied aan albei musici se talent en vermoëns en was ’n gepaste einde vir ’n geslaagde uitvoering van ’n intelligente programkeuse.
Schoeman, Korsten, Free State Orchestra Outstanding - 2015 {Afrikaans}
Die Rachmaninoff is ’n werk gevul met Slawiese nostalgie en melodieë wat voldoen aan die basiese vereistes van beweging, spanning en verskeidenheid. Reeds vroeg in die eerste beweging dui con passione die kerngevoel van die werk aan, wat maklik ook ’n slaggat vir ’n oordrewe melodramatiese vertolking kan wees. Ben Schoeman, bekend as ’n pianis met integriteit, het juis dié eienskap laat botvier vir ’n uitvoering wat jou nooit onaangeraak gelaat het nie en terselfdertyd getrou gebly het aan die partituur. Sy swiepende breë frases het die deinings van die musiek beklemtoon en dié golwe is met dieselfde musikale aanvoeling deur die orkes nageboots. Die enkelnoot-passasies in die stadige tweede beweging het Schoeman se sensitiwiteit ten beste belig. Hy het die musiek dromerig en peinsend laat sweef met onverbeterlike toongradering en fluisterende frase-einde. Die laaste mate van die middel was ’n meesterklas in uitdrukkingsvolle piano-spel. Hier moet die eerste klarinetspeler uitgesonder word vir haar roerende solo vroeg in dié beweging. Schoeman se tegniese behendigheid in virtuose passasies in die derde beweging het die werk na ’n sprankelende en opwindende einde gestuur, met drif waar nodig.
Ná pouse het die Vrystaatse Simfonieorkes (VSO) sy kans aangegryp om alleen te skitter. Korsten se energieke dirigeerbewegings het die spelers aangevuur tot ’n aangrypende uitvoering geanker in ’n stylgetroue musikaal-verantwoordbare vertolking. Die grondslag is gelê deur ’n deeglike ontleding van dié eerste simfonie van Brahms met sy tipies gepaste instrumentasie vir dié komponis se hartstogtelike erns. Vertroosting in die tweede deel en ’n strelende derde deel is treffend gekontrasteer met die grootse eerste en dramatiese vierde deel. Maar wat veral opgeval het, is die wyse waarop die rykheid aan instrumentasie deur kleiner instrumentkombinasies of instrumentseksies uitgelig is. Elke oomblik in die uitvoering het geboei, soms deur kort crescendo’s wat klein opwellings meegebring het, ’n grasieuse aanslag (derde deel), briljansie (vierde deel) en die ongeëwenaarde mooi horing-solo. Die VSO het die afgelope drie, vier jaar stelselmatig verbeter wat samespel, integrasie van die seksies, vertolking en tegniese vaardigheid betref. Saterdagaand is alle aspekte van orkesspel tot nog ’n groter hoogte gevoer in ’n uitvoering wat die gehoor met ’n lied in die hart huis toe gestuur het. Bravo aan al die musici wat bygedra het tot ’n baie spesiale konsert met Korsten wat weer bewys het waarom hy internasionaal gesog is.
Interpretations offer silent ecstasy - 2014 {Afrikaans}
Anzél Gerber and Ben Schoeman perform at Carnegie Hall, New York - 2014
Saint-Saëns Piano Concerto no. 5 at LSO St. Luke’s - 2014
Robert Matthew-Walker – 24 May 2014 classicalsource.com
Cape Philharmonic Orchestra - April 2014 {Afrikaans}
Pieter Kooij – 26 April 2014 – Die Burger
Cleveland International Piano Competition - 2013
Daniel Hathaway – 1 August 2013 – clevelandclassical.com
Performances at the National Arts Festival in South Africa
Moments of virtuosity - July 2013
Jeff Brukman – 2 July 2013- Cue Newspaper
The Gift of Musical Characterisation: July 2011
Riek van Rensburg – 10 April 2011 – Pretoria News
Ben Schoeman, the 2011 Standard Bank Young Artist for Music
Warren Holden – Classicfeel Magazine
The winning touch of a consummate artist
Jeff Brukman – 30 June 2011 – Cue
Schoeman absoluut wêreldklas {Afrikaans}
Hans Potgieter – 16 April 2011 – Die Volksblad
Brahms Concerto No 2 {Afrikaans}
28 Augustus 2010 – Die Burger