United Kingdom Fauré, Debussy, Bartók: Jean-Efflam Bavouzet (piano). Wigmore Hall, London, 13.11.2022. (JC)
Fauré – Nocturne No.6 in D flat main, Op.63X
Debussy – Estampes; Images Book II; Préludes Book I X
Bartók – Improvisations on Hungarian Peasant Songs, Op.20 No.7
Sunday was an absolute pleasure for me and lots of others at Wigmore Hall as we marvelled on the approach Jean-Efflam Bavouzet conjured the magic of Debussy on the piano. The corridor was crammed to the brim that night time, bursting with chatter—and, sadly, dotted with extra well mannered coughs than was socially obligatory—making a stark distinction to the darkish and empty Marylebone streets on a cold night.
The effervescent Frenchman strode in, by means of overture gave a short and humorous speech relating to the slight change within the order of the programme, sat down and…unfold a D flat main chord? The casualness with which he opened the live performance caught me abruptly, however this manner of ‘warming up’ was on no account out of character with the fashion he dropped at the opener of the newly amended programme: Fauré’s Nocturne No.6 in D flat main. Reading from the rating, of which he turned the pages himself whereas enjoying, Bavouzet gave us a glimpse of the opportunity of recent views on well-known items along with his interpretation of the nocturne; his rubato, by which the bass be aware is barely out of sync with the melodic line, reminds one of many enjoying by the twentieth-century greats akin to Arthur Friedheim and Alfred Cortot. His nocturne was something however calming; it was full of colors and sudden contrasts, performed with an improvisatory feeling. Fauré’s nocturnes are very a lot completely different from Chopin’s, the place the bel canto soprano voice dominates the area of the melody; Fauré’s melodies are all over the place, from the highest register of the keyboard to the underside octaves, and Bavouzet clearly confirmed all that, enjoying with an ideal licence of freedom however not and not using a sense of the place the music was heading.
Pagodes from Debussy’s Estampes adopted instantly and, similar to its predecessor, was imbibed with an extroverted power fairly than a placid, calming one usually encountered in Debussy enjoying. I discovered Bavouzet’s enjoying to be daring fairly than refined, but additionally stuffed with many various layers. Listening to him, I considered a palette of assorted colors fairly than many shades of the identical color. La soirée dans Grenade, the second piece within the set of three impressed by wood-block prints of Japanese artwork, was equally stuffed with vibrant and diversified colors, enhanced by the Yamaha which Bavouzet selected specifically for his recitals. I used to be entranced by the way in which he was in a position to juggle the various layers of sound concurrently; it was as if his enjoying unfolded vertically, revealing layer upon layer, even because the music progressed linearly via time. Bavouzet’s efficiency of Jardins sous la pluie, the ultimate piece of Estampes and the one one among the many three with a flavour of Frenchness, was crisp and clear, evoking the modern aspect of Debussy in the way in which he dealt with his themes. I discovered it fascinating that whereas the enjoying was unsentimental, involved solely with the manufacturing of sound and a complete vary of it, it was nonetheless riveting and captured our full consideration. With a flourish, Bavouzet abruptly stood as much as take his first bow to resounding applause.
What adopted was a cocktail of three-parts Debussy and one-part Bartók: an unorthodox efficiency of Debussy’s Images Book II, by which Bartók’s ‘Improvisation on Hungarian Peasant Songs’ was inserted between Cloches à travers les feuilles and Et la lune descend sur le temple qui fut, the primary and second piece in Debussy’s suite. Bavouzet’s efficiency of Debussy’s Images, printed in 1907, confirmed a radically completely different aspect of Debussy in comparison with the writing in Estampes, printed solely 4 years earlier in 1903. The sense of mysteriousness and the ineffable pervaded Bavouzet’s efficiency of Cloches, a distinction to the brilliant colors he evinced in Estampes. I used to be struck by the way in which Bavouzet managed to amass nice freedom within the immobile and calm Et la lune, even in essentially the most fragile moments, including small splashes of color right here and there with out breaking the marginally pulsating environment he had fastidiously created, commanding our consideration with some delicate pianissimos. I wasn’t so certain in regards to the interpolation of the Bartók Improvsations after Cloches, however having it precede Et la lune did spotlight among the Debussyan chords afterwards, making them extra poignant. Poissons d’or, the final piece of Debussy’s Images, requires a playfulness mixed with impeccable virtuosity, and Bavouzet was the proper individual to ship that.
If there have been anybody who was nonetheless on the fence about Bavouzet’s artistic creativeness on the keyboard, the second half of Bavouzet’s recital, dominated completely by Debussy’s Préludes Book I, would have satisfied them completely that his capability for creativeness is unmatched. This second half was stuffed with moments the place I used to be on the sting of my seat, hoping for extra and infrequently upset {that a} sure Prélude needed to finish so quickly. Bavouzet was simply as entertaining a performer to look at as one to take heed to, and his on-stage theatrics of air-conducting in addition to bringing down his complete arm from an ideal top complemented the music he was producing. What I notably loved was the way in which he confirmed a unusual aspect of Debussy that solely a performer of nice virtuosity and creativeness may divulge to his viewers. I virtually thought he was enjoying jazz in Les collines d’Anacapri, and when he carried out La danse de Puck, juggling many characters concurrently along with his ever-varying sound, I believed I used to be watching a comedy unfold earlier than me. He may additionally go wild on the keyboard, producing colossal sounds, akin to he did in Ce qu’a vu le vent de l’ouest and the well-known La cathédrale engloutie (me and my buddies couldn’t get sufficient of the satisfying bass C he performed in that Prélude—merely ravishing!).
Joy and a way of freshness pervaded everything of Jean-Efflam Bavouzet’s live performance; nor did his excessive spirits and power fade away after the ultimate Prélude, Minstrels, for he gave a pleasant encore of his instructor Pierre Sancan’s Mouvement, which was performed impeccably and with an ideal sense of humour.
An unforgettable recital by a pianist whose sound reveals a French lineage wealthy with historical past, but whose sound can also be distinctly his.
Jeremy Chan