the XVth International Tchaikovsky Competition
(1840 – 1893)
________
my musicologist friend alerted me to the
fact that since the 15th of this month, and
onwards till the 3rd of July, the XVth
International Tchaikovsky Competition is
on, at which point I raced to my position,
got a front row seat, for you as well
should you decide to join me, at the gala
opening, check it out, performed in the
Bolshoi Hall of the Moscow Conservatory,
in, of course, Moscow, no less
you’ll be reminded of the monumentality
of Tchaikovsky, his melodic sense, his
emotional power, his subtlety
also Russia’s
the introductory “Capriccio”, conducted
by Vladimir Fedoseyev, is rousing,
probably the best you’ll ever hear, though
it should’ve been called “espagnol” rather
than “italien”, I’ve always thought, there’s
even a redoubtable tambourinist – how
Spanish is that – you’ll want to watch out
for, however far from Spain he might, in
his quenched enthusiasm, seem
Tchaikovsky’s “Mélodie”, op. 42, no. 3,
played in all innocence by a 14-year-old,
a cherub in the guise of already an angel,
follows
the concert suite from his “Nutcracker”,
mastered by a 13-year-old with the
command of a prodigy, after that
you’ll remember Daniil Trifonov from
the 13th Rubinstein Competition, which
he won, accompanying a soprano here,
but you’ll also see him bring down the
house with his last two movements of
Tchaikovsky’s iconic 1st Piano Concerto
why would they have left out the
thunderous, wonderful first, I wonder
Daniil also won the last Tchaikovsky
Competition, the 14th, also in 2011
most of the program is in Russian,
with some considerations for a
perhaps interested English audience,
thanks to Valery Georgiev, a conductor
of considerable note, not at all the
vagrant here that he seems
my musicologist, who speaks everything,
understands the Russian, but it’s not
difficult to understand, the message
is one of harmony and peace
the opposite of war is not peace, they
are saying, it’s art, and specifically
here music, these are here actions to
unite, beyond borders, beyond creeds,
beyond even transgressions
they signal out Van Cliburn, who plays
all, incidentally, of Tchaikovsky’s 1st
I signal out Eurovision, the Tchaikovsky
Competition, now in its XVth year
Richard
Richibi's Weblog 