Jan Lisiecki (Piano) at Koerner Hall, 273 Bloor Street West, Sunday, December 6, 2015.
Is this the next Glenn Gould? This question has come up before, and while there is never going to be another Glenn Gould, Jan Lisiecki – now 20-years-old (and much like the internet these days) – seems to be changing into a new pianist every year.
Jan Lisiecki is very much an artist in rapid growth mode. It is a little like watching the sun rise behind the rocky mountains, with vivid colours changing so fast that it looks like another planet. Just when you thought you couldn’t see a more interesting colour, it shifts and flows across the sky. At the risk of sounding gushy, Lisiecki is the real deal, and his career is poised to rise like a Banff sunrise.
Last night, we returned to Lisiecki’s old stomping ground at the Royal Conservatory’s Koerner Hall to meet a sold-out crowd. Opening with Chopin’s 24 Preludes, this is new ground for Lisiecki and a follow-up to his 2013 Deutsche Grammophon release of Études that have been written about to death.
His performance was remarkably detailed, not only in his technique but the sophistication of his phrasing. It’s impressive stuff. Imagine the thoughts of all the pianists in the audience: “That phrase took me four years to perfect, and there he is playing it like he’s eating a piece of toast.” Despite the shifty looks, his fans and the curious were out in full.
Chopin’s preludes are essentially a series of introductory pieces, but Chopin’s approach follows Bach’s “The Well-Tempered Clavier,” where each stands as a self-contained hot take that conveys specific emotions and moods. In the age of Twitter, Facebook and Buzz Feed – short, poignant bursts of music are apt for our hyper-connected lives, and pianists have been programming Preludes and Études more and more.
Attention spans beware, however, as Lisiecki’s programme was well over two hours long. After driving through Chopin’s preludes, even an intermission couldn’t revive the senses for the subsequent hilly terrain of Mozart’s Piano Sonata No. 11, Liszt’s three difficult yet beautiful Concert Études, and the stiff drink that is Mendelssohn’s “Variations sérieuses” (even the teetotalers were caught having a nip). It was a crowd of a programme, and a wonder Lisiecki had anything left for an encore, but he did.
While the piano is in many ways the perfect solo instrument, the homogenous tone of a single piano can become tiresome after a spell. The question of listening fatigue is important. The goal is to leave the audience satiated, but with room for more. As a critic, I’ll tell you it’s hard to jump out of your seat with enthusiasm when you can’t feel your legs anymore.
As heard on Sunday afternoon, Lisiecki’s mid-teenaged exuberant sound has been coloured by his 20’s with a shifted focus on a conscious awareness of the bigger picture – which is the mark of a mature performer. Lisiecki created a flowing musical narrative that pulled out the razzle-dazzle when needed, yet also tempered it with an almost soulful, meditative state that sat and melted like a truffle on the tongue. In particular, his rendition of Liszt’s Concert Études was telling.
As Études, his focus was on the hands and the positional effect on the melody, with its many accentuations and phrasing with alternating hands. He maintained them as studies, but also presented them impressionistically, with faint blurs of chromatic lines abstracting the image that unfolded in sound.
Lisiecki is releasing a new CD early next year, and if this repertoire is any indication of what we might expect, there is much to look forward to in this ever-changing pianist.
#LUDWIGVAN
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