Young pianist ignites Rutland audience
Toolbox
By Jim Lowe Staff Writer - Published: November 16, 2008
RUTLAND — Young Russian pianist Gleb Ivanov delivered a brilliant performance of Mussorgsky's virtuosic "Pictures at an Exhibition," Friday at the Paramount Center, to a wildly enthusiastic ovation — and it was Vladimir Horowitz's even more difficult version.
Ivanov's solo recital was the second in the Paramount's classical series, "Passages at the Paramount," which, in partnership with New York's Young Concert Artists, brings young up-and-coming musicians here.
Born in Moscow to a family of musicians, Ivanov, now 26, had a prodigious musical experience in Russia before coming to the United States, where he now studies at New York's Manhattan School of Music. But Ivanov's performances are way beyond student level: He already possesses a powerful technique and, although it needs maturing, a distinct and convincing musical personality.
Ivanov delivered "Pictures at an Exhibition" with confidence, color and passion. Most know this piece in its orchestrated ver-sion by French composer Maurice Ravel, but Mussorgsky wrote it for solo piano.
He chose to perform an adaptation by Horowitz, the greatest of Russian-American pianists, which adds pianistic touches to Mussorgsky's original score. While this is certainly a questionable idea, Ivanov delivered those pianistic touches with panache.
Ivanov plays with an ease and a technique that opens all sorts of musical possibilities. His articulation is wonderfully clean, his sound slender yet powerful. Save for missing some of the grandeur of the "Pictures," he played with color and unbridled passion.
Another success was Mozart's Sonata in a minor, K. 310. Surprisingly, Ivanov adapted well to the classical elegance of Mozart. Although he could have breathed a bit more between phrases in the two fast movements, Ivanov played evenly and expressively. The slow movement, an andante, was performed with a very personal touch.
Ivanov didn't seem to see the rhapsodic side of Brahms' Three Intermezzi, Opus 117, but he played them with a quiet beauty. He presented some idiosyncratic ideas in Chopin's Ballade No. 1 in g minor, but it was largely convincing, and Ivanov seemed to enjoy its virtuosity.
Unfortunately, the program lacked any contemporary music. In fact, there was nothing from the 20th or the 21st centuries.
Ivanov is an excellent young pianist, with lots of character, who is likely on the cusp of a real career.
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