Saturday Matinee

With Piano Soloists Conrad Tao and Peng Peng

Peng Peng (left, photo by Peter Schaaf) and Conrad Tao (right, photo by J. Henry Fair)

Last Thursday, the San Francisco Symphony featured two young pianists that got me thinking about child prodigies. I walked in with more than few misgivings. First, I feel that too often child prodigies are presented as a circus act. In addition, I personally would much rather see a top artist with mature artistry over a five year old playing fast, any day. I also have problems with the way that prodigies may be forced into an unnatural childhood; as an adult, I can’t do something I like for 8 hours in a row, not to mention practicing. Coincidentally, on my commute to the symphony, I caught an interview with 9 year old child prodigy Marc Yu over the radio on NPR. Click here on “Listen Now”; I was uneasy by how contrived everything sounded, from the careful proclamation that he has lots of friends and lots of time to play and how his lifestyle is actually much better than normal public school attending kids, to the eerie use of the phrase, “dining with the Muses or other gods” in speaking of his future engagement of playing with Lang Lang. What nine year old TALKS like that?? Also, it might serve to present his skills in playing a faster, more technical piece that doesn’t require such deep introspection, like the Chopin nocturne in C sharp minor that he chose to play. Despite my misgivings, I couldn’t resist when I saw that the two young soloists, 13 year old Conrad Tao and 15 year old Peng Peng, were playing the Mozart Concerto for Two Pianos with the San Francisco Symphony. I have a soft spot for this piece, as I played this with a full orchestra (not with the SFS, except in my dreams) with my twin sister at the creaky old age of 17. So I went to check it out.

All my cynicism about child prodigies flew out the water when I heard them play. The technical demands of Mozart are difficult enough due to the transparency of the music where every mistake sticks out like a flashing neon sign, but this didn’t phase the young soloists, as they tackled it with flying colors. I was more struck by the maturity of their artistry, and how different the two players were. Each player brought their own flavor to their own parts and in the words of Paula Abdul, made it their own. Conrad Tao was more logical in his playing, with a light attack and a gentle consideration in the shaping of his phrases, which was perfect for Mozart. Peng Peng was more lyrical and poetic, using bigger contrasts which added intrigue. Peng Peng would perform quick runs up the keyboard with the notes growing softer and would disappear into thin air, and the effect was breathtaking. If Tao was more logical and grounded, Peng Peng was more heavenly. If Tao had more technical clarity and consistency, Peng Peng had more poignancy and sensitivity. I found that this individuality added interest, yet I feel like the piece really calls for two pianists who sound like they are playing as one. Minor details such as occasional rushing (ah, the eagerness of youth), losing steam and strength especially in the high energy third movement where fast runs or the melody (especially in higher registers) weren’t crystal clear seemed completely insignificant compared to the fact that these soloists really displayed an astounding unique artistry in their performance. The notoriously difficult cadenzas were executed flawlessly as the lightning quick runs passed from one piano to the other seamlessly. More than anything, they made this piece sound like a ton of fun, this performance being one of the most colorful renditions that I’ve heard of the piece. What they lacked in brilliant articulation and force, they made up for in enthusiasm and the risk to infuse it with their own personalities. As an encore, the two pianists played a rousing two piano rendition of Sousa’s “Stars and Stripes Forever” arranged by the players themselves (based on Horowitz’s one piano version), which had everyone to their feet. Needless to say, Tao and Peng Peng really displayed a maturity in their playing well beyond their age, and even impressed a cynic like me.

Despite my suspicions regarding child prodigies, there is something profoundly inspirational about them as well. With Tao and Peng Peng, I got the idea that these two players are really doing something that they truly love doing. I could be wrong, but it was especially telling in the Off the Podium post performance discussion, where they had obviously thought a lot about what they do, and why they do it. Other audience members apparently felt the same way, as I saw more than a few groups of children attend the concert, especially visible in the Center Terrace seats. It was definitely the most number of younger kids I’ve seen at a symphony concert.

The Mozart two piano concerto was one of three Mozart pieces the symphony performed that night. The concert opened with selections of ballet music from the opera, Idomeneo. Conductor James Gaffigan opened by introducing Mozart and narrating certain moods from the music, which my seatmate appreciated, as it felt like Gaffigan was teaching the audience how to deduce certain moods and emotions from the music that they hear. It does encourage more active listening especially from people newer to classical music. The ballet music was typical Mozart – elegant, graceful, and bathed in a warm rosy glow. The ballet music was extremely descriptive, lending easily to be classified into different moods (angry music, pretty music, sad music). The program ended with Mozart’s Symphony No. 41, “Jupiter”. The symphony surged through its different colors, change of keys, and rapid modulations with invigorating assurance. The second movement featured gentle muted strings; I didn’t hear any of the “pathos” that the program notes indicated, just a sweet melancholy. Unsettling chords and swells resolve quickly so tension was never around for long. This concert wasn’t the most diverse Mozart program and started to feel a bit one-note towards the end. There was no strident Mozart, or scary Mozart, or anything atypical Mozart, just his normal classy, playful, warm self. But what was presented was animatedly emotive, and it inspired my seatmate to listen to more Mozart. If this was the point of this concert, then San Francisco Symphony succeeded completely.

A side note: for those of you who haven’t attended the Off the Podium post performance question and answer sessions, I recommend it highly. You can really ask all the questions you want, because there have been some pretty stupid questions and chances are yours won’t be the worst, and it feels like a lot of people are there to listen, not to necessarily ask any questions. Click on the comments to read a story that occurred to me at the Off the Podium.

Recommended recordings:

• Mozart: Concerto No. 10, K365; Concerto No. 12, K414; Trio, K502: including the Mozart Two Piano Concerto with Peter and Rudolf Serkin. A sparkling rendition as sharp and as present as a glittering diamond.
• Evegny Kissin’s recording of the Chopin Piano Concertos when he was 12: my preferred piano prodigy recording of choice – definitely not the worst recording out there, definitely not bad.
  

Other reviews:

• sfmike

San Francisco Symphony website