RECITAL
Carnegie Hall
Emanuel Ax - Piano
ALL-BEETHOVEN PROGRAM
Piano Sonata No. 8 in C Minor, Op. 13, "Pathétique"
Six Variations on an Original Theme in F Major, Op. 34
Piano Sonata No. 16 in G Major, Op. 31, No. 1
Polonaise in C Major, Op. 89
Piano Sonata No. 23 in F Minor, Op. 57, "Appassionata"
Emanuel Ax performs several of Beethoven’s most beloved works and some relative rarities. Beethoven put his unique stamp on the theme and variations form by assigning a new key to each variation in his Six Variations on an Original Theme, which provide interesting contrast to the more conservative but better-known variations of the “Appassionata” Sonata’s middle movement.
Beethoven’s sonatas are the pinnacle of the form where unfettered expression and inspired melody are wed to an unsurpassed understanding of the piano’s physical capabilities. These attributes are especially evident in the moving “Pathétique” and stormy “Appassionata.”
With only one exception, all of the works on this evening’s program are clustered in the years around the turn of the 19th century, when Beethoven was slowly but surely transforming himself from a fire-breathing keyboard virtuoso to a no less boldly impetuous composer. Central to this metamorphosis were the “Pathétique” and “Appassionata” sonatas, which dazzled and perplexed contemporary audiences with their explosively dramatic character and concentrated economy of expression.
With only one exception, all of the works on this evening’s program are clustered in the years around the turn of the 19th century, when Beethoven was slowly but surely transforming himself from a fire-breathing keyboard virtuoso to a no less boldly impetuous composer. Central to this metamorphosis were the “Pathétique” and “Appassionata” sonatas, which dazzled and perplexed contemporary audiences with their explosively dramatic character and concentrated economy of expression.
Although mild-mannered by comparison, the G-Major Sonata plays equally fast and loose with convention, thwarting the listener’s expectations at every turn. Hardly less innovative are the dozens of theme-and-variation sets and shorter pieces that Beethoven produced throughout his career, both to restock his concert repertoire and to satisfy public demand. The Op. 34 Variations are notable for their unorthodox tonal scheme—Beethoven boasted that they represented an “entirely new manner of composing” — while the jaunty Polonaise in C Major, written in 1814 for the dance-crazed Congress of Vienna, pours old wine into a sparkling new bottle.
Describing a pianist’s performance as unhinged might seem like an unlikely compliment. But the adjective could be applied in the most flattering terms to Emanuel Ax’s engrossing interpretation of Beethoven’s “Pathétique” Sonata on Wednesday evening at Carnegie Hall.
The sonata was included on an all-Beethoven lineup, with two popular sonatas bookending three lesser-known pieces. Mr. Ax brought demonic power to the “Pathétique,” which opened the program. In the opening section, he revealed with particularly vivid colors the contrast between crashing low chords and the yearning melody in the upper register. His clarity of line was admirable in the tumultuous thickets of the first movement; the ethereal Adagio unfolded with a gorgeous simplicity; and he imbued the third-movement Rondo with seething tension.
After the tumult of the “Pathétique,” Mr. Ax offered a lighthearted contrast, a delightful and delicately shaded interpretation of the Six Variations on an Original Theme in F (Op. 34). Beethoven wrote the “Pathétique” during what historians have recognized as his early period, when he was already challenging the precedent of Viennese Classicism established by composers like Mozart and Haydn. He continued to break new ground in his middle period, when he composed the “Appassionata” Sonata. Mr. Ax brought passion and power in admirable measure to his performance, which concluded the program on a stormy note.
Beethoven’s Sonata No. 16 in G is perhaps the least often programmed work of his Opus 31 set, which includes the famous “Tempest” Sonata. It received an insightful and elegant performance here. Mr. Ax played the runs in the first movement with sparkling energy; the trills of the Adagio unfolded with leisurely grace, and the concluding Rondo with both strength and charm.
The second half of the program included an unfamiliar short bonbon: the Polonaise in C (Op. 89), which Beethoven wrote in 1814 for festivities at the Congress of Vienna and dedicated to a visiting czarina. After all the dramatic Beethovenian moods, Mr. Ax offered a gentle encore: an introverted rendition of Schubert’s “Der Müller und der Bach,” in Liszt’s transcription.
Review: Emanuel Ax Weathers Beethoven’s Emotional Storms at Carnegie Hall
Describing a pianist’s performance as unhinged might seem like an unlikely compliment. But the adjective could be applied in the most flattering terms to Emanuel Ax’s engrossing interpretation of Beethoven’s “Pathétique” Sonata on Wednesday evening at Carnegie Hall.
The sonata was included on an all-Beethoven lineup, with two popular sonatas bookending three lesser-known pieces. Mr. Ax brought demonic power to the “Pathétique,” which opened the program. In the opening section, he revealed with particularly vivid colors the contrast between crashing low chords and the yearning melody in the upper register. His clarity of line was admirable in the tumultuous thickets of the first movement; the ethereal Adagio unfolded with a gorgeous simplicity; and he imbued the third-movement Rondo with seething tension.
After the tumult of the “Pathétique,” Mr. Ax offered a lighthearted contrast, a delightful and delicately shaded interpretation of the Six Variations on an Original Theme in F (Op. 34). Beethoven wrote the “Pathétique” during what historians have recognized as his early period, when he was already challenging the precedent of Viennese Classicism established by composers like Mozart and Haydn. He continued to break new ground in his middle period, when he composed the “Appassionata” Sonata. Mr. Ax brought passion and power in admirable measure to his performance, which concluded the program on a stormy note.
Beethoven’s Sonata No. 16 in G is perhaps the least often programmed work of his Opus 31 set, which includes the famous “Tempest” Sonata. It received an insightful and elegant performance here. Mr. Ax played the runs in the first movement with sparkling energy; the trills of the Adagio unfolded with leisurely grace, and the concluding Rondo with both strength and charm.
The second half of the program included an unfamiliar short bonbon: the Polonaise in C (Op. 89), which Beethoven wrote in 1814 for festivities at the Congress of Vienna and dedicated to a visiting czarina. After all the dramatic Beethovenian moods, Mr. Ax offered a gentle encore: an introverted rendition of Schubert’s “Der Müller und der Bach,” in Liszt’s transcription.
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