Review: Stephen Hough is perfection-plus

Wednesday, 18 May 2016, 4:30 pm
Article: Max Rashbrooke

Hough Plays Brahms
New Zealand Symphony Orchestra
Saturday, May 14
Reviewer: Max Rashbrooke

In his interview with Scoop [Rachmaninov’s hairy chest, and other entertainments], pianist Stephen Hough made the point that playing Brahms’s Second Piano Concerto requires the artist, more than with most pieces, to keep the entire work in their head at every moment. Because it finishes on a more contemplative note than most concertos, the earlier movements have to be played with some restraint, otherwise the end comes as an anti-climax.

That kind of masterful, controlled playing is exactly what Hough delivered on Saturday night. Not that it was boring, far from it. He took risks, and leant into the music when required. But you also felt that every moment of his playing made sense in the wider picture of the piece. Playing alongside him, the NZSO were wonderful as ever, and their guest conductor, Gustavo Gimeno, coaxed from them a slightly darker, edgier sound than I’m used to hearing.

After the Brahms had finished, to rapturous applause, Hough treated the audience to an encore, a Chopin Nocturne (opus 9 no 2); for me, as an amateur pianist, it was the most extraordinary moment of the evening. Really good piano playing compels you from the first note, by sounding absolutely convincing, almost inevitable, while also putting the player’s individual stamp on the music. That is exactly what Hough did. His playing was exquisite, every shade of tone and dynamic done with total grace; it was as if we – the audience, the orchestra, him – were all held together, suspended in time and in the liquid sound of his piano.

After the interval, we got to hear Gareth Farr’s fantastically titled From the Depths sound the Great Sea Gongs (Part I), 20 years after it burst onto the New Zealand music scene. It was a treat to be exposed once more to its exuberance and bravura energy, as conducted by a master percussionist.

All reviews are the result of personal experience and temperament, so it’s as well to admit that, after the ecstasy of Hough and the energy of Farr, I felt too drained to fully appreciate the Shostakovich Symphony no 1 that followed. There was some beautiful playing, especially among the woodwind, but after such intensity its playfulness didn’t – for me – quite stack up.

ENDS

© Scoop Media

Max Rashbrooke

Journalist

Max Rashbrooke is a journalist and author working in Wellington, New Zealand, where he writes about politics, finance and social issues.

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