Sometimes it only takes one, short piece of music to rattle your world.

My latest little tremor came during a charming recital/interview pianist Alessio Bax (husband and frequent duo partner of former Montreal pianist Lucille Chung) presented on NPR earlier this month.

It’s worth listening to the whole 35-minute broadcast, where Bax shows off his (typical) mix of easy technique and fluid musicianship.

But something strange happens in one of Johannes Brahms’ introspective pieces, the Op. 10 No. 1 Ballade.

I’ve always found it difficult to figure out what to do with Brahms’ noodly moments. What’s on the printed page is always the product of careful thought and interesting repetition, variation (and inversion) of patterns. Often, these patterns get in the way of the flow of music. So, does the pianist gloss over the details for the sake of flow, or stop the music and smell the little flowers?

Bax pretty much stops the show here, and I felt proud that he had the guts to do it.

But is this the way it’s supposed to sound?

You’ll find the interview and music here.

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John Terauds

John Terauds, Editor-Emeritus of Ludwig van Toronto, is currently a Divinity student at the University of Toronto and a church music director. He joined the Toronto Star in 1988, was the classical music critic from 2005 to 2012, and continues as a freelance critic for the paper. He is the co-author of Roy Thomson Hall: A Portrait, a book written with Toronto Star Colleague, William Littler.

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