Monday 10 November, 2025

Musica Viva Australia

City Recital Hall

Review by Paul Neeson (Arts Wednesday)

Photos by Claudia Raschella

Polish pianist, Piotr Anderszewski returns to our shores for Musica Viva Australia in a series of recitals featuring music by three German greats – Brahms, Bach and Beethoven – representing music from the Romantic, Baroque and Classical eras respectively. Interestingly the pieces chosen by our soloist were all composed, not at the end, but late in the careers of the composers.

Anderszewski performed a selection from Brahms’ Op.116-119 works for piano that include Fantasies, Intermezzi and Pieces for Piano. These were the final works for solo piano that Brahms wrote, and many have argued (contentiously) that he was lapsing into a morbid fascination with death. Regardless, the music speaks its own tales which are diverse, but many definitely reside in introspection and invoke deep meditations upon a theme and a kind of perhaps self-indulgent exploration and fascination with all things metaphysical: realms beyond what is physically present, worlds beyond what we perceive in the here and now, a contemplation upon abstract concepts such as existence and being. Having said that they also include outbursts of an almost divine light, joy and drama.

Anderszewski’s mastering of Brahms’ music was on display for almost an hour without a break. His choice of pieces provided a seamless narrative, with highs and lows but always full of expression. His ability to weight the individual melodic lines (and each piece had two or three interweaving) drew us through the tapestry of the often rhapsodic form. His technical skill was never in question, but towards the end of this half of the concert I felt his concentration was beginning to tire as some of the gloss in the bravura sections faded slightly.

After interval we had two Prelude and Fugues from J.S. Bach’s Well-Tempered Clavier Book II. Despite the glittering career of Angela Hewitt and her piano interpretations of Bach’s music, I always find his music never sounds quite right on piano instead of an instrument of the time such as harpsichord or organ.  Nevertheless Anderszewski has in his own right become known for his Bach performances and tonight showed us clearly why that is so. Again Anderszewski’s skill lay in the clarity of his lines, especially in the three overlapping lines in the fugues. And being performed on piano allowed for greater dynamic variation which he employed artistically, along with the occasional hint of rubato. My only criticism was some of the ornamentation in the E major prelude didn’t have sufficient attack for my taste, but were more subdued.

And finally to Beethoven’s Piano Sonata No.31, his penultimate Sonata for Piano. An interesting choice, but primarily I suspect because, like the two Bach works, it ends with a fugue. But more so it is a work that represents the transition from Classical to Romantic, becoming more rhapsodic and including vocal style arias without accompaniment. Anderszewski’s musical maturity was necessary to make sense of the complex musical narrative of the work that constantly changes pace, dynamic, key and structure. His musicianship in this department was matched by his virtuosic dexterity in the fiendishly difficult final fugue section where the quavers evolve into complex overlapping semi-quaver motifs.

And what better icing to complete an already sumptuous cake than an encore from Chopin: the Mazurka Op. 59 No. 2 in A-flat major was exquisite in the hands of such a brilliant musician. Bravo indeed!

In all, a mature, magical, thought provoking performance from one of the world’s great pianists, a musician who can adapt to the variable conditions of each concert: piano, audience and repertoire. Musica Viva continues to bring virtuosic performances to its audiences – all I can say is, aren’t we so very, very lucky.