Igor Levit at the Schubert Club

original photo in program taken by Felix Brode

(Originally posted on Minnesota Theater Love)

I wanted to do a quick little write-up about a coffee concert I went to for the Schubert Club. Ok, so it wasn't really a coffee concert but it was at 10:30 on a Wed am. Perfect time for a cup of coffee and a little bite. This however was not a little bite. This was a really good musical meal.

The concert was in the new Ordway Concert Hall. I was on the main floor and let me tell you - the sound and acoustics are just amazing and brilliant in that room. It is a very live room, meaning you can hear everything that is going on around you. Luckily, the majority of the audience was very quiet through out both parts of the program. Sure, you had people cough, blow their nose, take out a coughdrop, etc...and sadly they seemed to do that continually during the playing, instead of the little pauses between sections of a piece. Maybe they hope that the piano will cover the noise, but the point of the pause is to give the audience a quick break so they can cough and adjust, turn the page of the program, or what have you. It allows the artist to stay focused and not be distracted in the middle of his playing.

And what playing it was. Igor Levit just released his third solo album for Sony Classical in Oct. 2015. He has played through out Europe and the States. The program he played for us was a total of four pieces. The first was a Bach Partita - which is made of seven parts. If you know Bach you know that there is usually some contrapuntal or fugue melody going on. The right hand starts a melody, the left hand starts the same melody a little behind the right - sort of like "Row, Row, Row your boat." There were times during this piece that I thought he had three hands because his playing was so precise. The melody was always so clear. The second piece of the first half was a Schubert - Moments Musicaux. I didn't know this work (and didn't have a program as I was a bit late in taking my seat) but I thought it was fantastic. Levit was great in this piece - using dynamics so well. There were some playful moments where you could tell he was having some fun playing, even if it was in a minor key.

After intermission, he played a Beethoven Sonata (#17 in D minor). This piece had some crossover moments where the left hand crossed over the right to play higher notes. It was fascinating to watch and hear. Even during these sections, Levit continually made the theme and melody clear. He finished the second half with Sonata #7 by Prokofiev. In doing so, he gave us a bit of a history lesson. Bach lived from 1685 - 1750, Schubert from 1797 - 1828, Beethoven from 1770 to 1827, and Prokofiev was born in 1891 and died in 1953. The first and last pieces were from very different periods in music, and the two middle pieces were from the same period but from very different composers. I have to admit, I have a weakness for Russian composers. They have a strength and passion that I really like. This Prokofiev was no different. The first movement had a knocking motif (four repeated notes) that reminded me of the knocking in one of Shostakovich's Symphonies. The second movement of the Prokofiev was stunning, while the playing of the last movement was incredible. Levit received a well earned standing ovation after this piece and the applause continued until he came back for an encore. He announced it from the stage and so I know it was a Shostakovich piece but honestly, am not sure which one. Regardless it was a fantastic way to spend a late winter morning.