BY STEPHANIE ESLAKE
Christian Leotta Plays Beethoven
Federation Concert Hall, 26 May 2015
There’s a reason Christian Leotta is known as the King of Beethoven. The Italian pianist performed a program of all-Beethoven sonatas in Hobart’s Federation Concert Hall and the result was as close to perfection as I feel comfortable admitting.
Before the concert, an unusual calm seemed to come over the audience. No nervous coughs, not much chitchat. Perhaps it was the absence of an intimidatingly sized orchestra warming up instruments. Regardless, when Christian stepped out on stage my ears were relaxed and ready to receive whatever music he had to give. With a delightfully friendly grin, he sat down to commence the concert with Beethoven’s Piano Sonata No. 10, Op. 14, No. 2.
The work opened more slowly than I had expected, and even through brighter passages the sound was quite sustained. He performed tension and release with meaning and deliberacy. The following Andante was almost exaggerated and comical in its pomposity, but with a brilliantly smooth contrast in the middle. It sounded like Christian was having fun – he certainly wasn’t afraid to pound the notes when the moments struck – and he seemed to take the audience along for the ride.
The Piano Sonata No. 21, Op. 53, ‘Waldstein’ had an appropriate feel of immediacy. It wasn’t rushed, but its catchy melody had a sense of urgency – though it was a little bottom heavy. At the end of the first movement there was chatter among the audience. Well, the urge to clap had to be replaced by something, didn’t it? An entirely different mood washed over the ears through the following movements, but a satisfying reappearance of Beethoven’s lovable theme was followed by another ripping big finish.
After the interval, the Piano Sonata No. 30, Op. 109 started at a tempo which seemed to match the very textbook definition of Beethoven’s instruction: ‘Vivace, ma non troppo’. The following Adagio espressivo was a nice retreat, and Christian demonstrated his outstanding dedication of priority between left and right hands. The concert ended with Beethoven’s Piano Sonata No. 31, Op. 110, and a feeling of utter satisfaction to have heard a magnificent set of works, magnificently performed. A complete success.
Image supplied.
