KVT – From Haydn to Piazolla with Verve and Affection

KVT is glad he accepted an invitation on a drizzly night

Monday, February 17:

Noted violinist Nguyen Sam Thi came back to Hanoi after a long absence and she and her friends from the Vietnam National Academy of Music decided to arrange a musical evening in the delightful theater at the Academy to show off Sam Thi’s talents and to show that their own was worthy of public performance.

Sam Thi comes from a long line of composers and classical musicians, became extra good on the violin, and, like a lot of extra-talented youngsters of the 70ies, she went to study in Moscow and then went on to further her musical education in Hong Kong, Norway and London. After a stint teaching at the Hanoi Conservatory in the 80ies she spread her wings and went on to teaching positions in Malaysia and England

It was appropriate that the concert was on her birthday and that her musical friends could finish off the night playing a Happy Birthday fantasia and presenting a scrumptious looking cake.

Sam Thi played prodigiously, without a real break through four of the exacting works and was a real delight to listen to especially in the Mozart Duo for Violin and Viola in which she and Nguyen Nguyet Thu had one of those musical conversations of which Mozart is master….and during which Ms Thu gave a masterly performance

After this Sam Thi was joined by pianist Bui Thanh Thao and Nguyen Van Quyen on the viola in one of Haydn’s most popular chamber works, ‘Gypsy’ during which everyone sits with bated breath through the first two movements to see if the last is going to live up to its gypsy reputation…fast and furious …and it did with a nice wow factor added in.

And here’s a You Tube bit of that movement also played just right and to indicate just how difficult it is to play

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2DBIN_0OfTg[/youtube]

The hit of the night was 20th century composer, Darius Mihaud’s ‘Suite for Piano, Violin and Clarinet’ which gave me a chance to see just how good Nguyen Quoc Bao plays the clarinet (superbly) and to witness a really excellent young talent on the keyboard…Tran Tam Ngoc (who unfortunately missed out in the photo below)

A difficult composition that has a Latin feel at first before it brings its polytonal techniques into play in the second movement with the instruments in different keys sort of having an argument with each other. The pull between clarinet and violin in the third movement is scintillating. The way in which Michaud juxtaposes music from old traditions such as baroque elegance with coarse jazz is great on the ear.

The delightful 12 minutes is here

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sTXxxkVLx2I[/youtube]

The evening began with Nguyen Khac Thanh, usually a violinist with the VNSO, with the baton and conducting a really nice interpretation of Bach’s ‘Double Concerto for Violin and Oboe’ which Bach wrote to help out Haydn’s little bro Michael who ran out of ideas at one vital stage in a commission and so added two pieces…of which this one has become immediately recognizable.

The strings backing up Sam Thi and a really good Seung Eun Lee on the oboe comprised a mob of talented people from the Academy and including the whole Song Hong Quintet-who will be at the Opera House in mid March and overseas later in the year so the conductor had a pool of excellent talent to show off his ability all seen here with soloists leaving the stage to huge applause (the European violinist in the orchestra is New York-an Audrey Morse)

Here is the piece that is usually part of any Swoon Collection of classical music and which Mozart had to make brilliant because in his day chamber orchestras had to play against a wandering audience who had no trouble chatting if the music wasn’t up to scratch…..which ours certainly was …but in tune with it a couple of biddies in row 3 kept up an interminable chatter (probably about their bowel conditions)

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O2y9FAKQpE8[/youtube]

Thanh finished up the night with a nicely appreciated tango double by Argentinean composer Astor Piazolla. Both are well known short pieces and the combined strings played ‘Oblivion’ to perfection…or to make you delightfully oblivious to any minor flaws. Its melancholy is intense.

The ‘Libertango’was Piazolla’s 1974 attempt to beak away from traditional tango to ‘Tango Neuvo’ which became the rage.

Both were arranged beautifully for strings by Nguyen Khac Uyen and they ended a little night’s music perfectly. The first to grab at your heart strings and the second to make you want to move sensuously. My favorite pianist, Pham Quynh Trang did a perfect job at the ivories.

Anh Thanh had every right to jump for joy at its conclusion

Here a piano trio gives a different, but oh sooo beautiful. version of Oblivion

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4a3o1t7BYsc[/youtube]

….and here is the Neuvo tango as it is danced to. (this is a typical Piazzolla arrangement feauring his famous bandoneon and foot tapping percussion)

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ro08gATcSIk[/youtube]

All in all, one those Hanoian nights that surprises you in the best way possible

Thanks for visiting us Sam Thi….and happy birthday!