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Volume CXXXIII, Number 7 |
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Polish pianist Krauze pleases
LESLIE BRIDGERS
STAFF WRITER
Students, teachers, and townsfolk packed into Gibson Recital Hall last Friday and helped themselves to hot drinks, cookies, and the innovative music of prominent Polish pianist Zygmunt Krauze. In this "Teatime Concert," Krauze's skill in both performance and composition more than proved himself a worthy entertainer. However, it was the originality of his music and the charm of his anecdotes that made him exceptional.
Before displaying his talents, Krauze was introduced by his boast-worthy background. He studied with premiere pianists and composers to earn an M.A. in each field from the Frederic Chopin Academy of Music in Warsaw. Krauze has won handfuls of awards for his contribution to the arts in both Poland and France, where he studied in the late 60s. He has showed his skill to audiences and apprentices in so many places throughout the world-from Sweden to South Korea-that it is hard to believe he had the time to stop in Maine.
However, for those who took advantage of his visit, Krauze surely left a lasting impression. For his first three pieces by fellow Polish composers, Krauze explained that he would be improvising on their original scores. However, he assured the audience that this tradition of improvisation is "not to destroy the music; it is simply to explore other possibilities."
His reverence for composers was evident as he laid out the works of Frederic Chopin, Karol Szymanowski, and Witold Lutoslawski with calm intent and obvious mastery.
Krauze followed with three pieces of his own, which he played as they were written and jokingly noted that he was "waiting for someone else to improvise on [his] music." He described his first piece, "Refrain," as "a scream for help" inspired by Dante's Divine Comedy. Krauze followed with his most intriguing piece of the night, "Stone Music," which was, he admitted, "quite unusual." The title of this piece proved to be surprisingly literal as the pianist placed various sized stones on the strings inside the piano and proceeded to pluck them, creating a harp-like sound capable of both soft delicacy and deep resonance.
After prompting his audience to crane their necks and strain their ears at the sight and sound of the stones, Krauze finished his hour-long performance with a short, jazzy piece called "Nightmare Tango." The applause indicated that the performance was more than well-received. After several bows, the modest Krauze left his already satisfied listeners with even wider smiles as he hesitantly encouraged the clapping crowd to "you know, exit."
Martin Perry, Brunswick concert pianist, will be giving a Teatime Concert this afternoon at 4:00 p.m. in Kresge Auditorium.
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