Did
anyone get to see pianist Hélène Grimaud perform the Brahms Piano Concerto No.
1 with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra earlier this month? While Ms. Grimaud
was in town, she stopped by the WGUC studio to visit and I decided to ask her a
few questions for my blog. When asked to name a controversial moment in music
history, Brahms immediately came to Hélène’s mind. Performing his piece just
a few hours after our chat, it made sense that her thoughts would go in that
direction. She told me that his piano concerto she was performing with the CSO
was not well received following its premiere. Brahms wrote in a way that the
piano was one of the orchestra instruments. To audiences, it sounded like a
symphony with piano obbligato rather than a piano concerto and that did not go
over well.
Ms.
Grimaud also mentioned that, as a pianist, Liszt is a major pillar in the
musical world, changing the “universe” of piano performance with his avant
garde work. She mentioned that, in her opinion, we wouldn’t have Wagner if we
didn’t have Liszt.
I
also again had the opportunity to talk with Cincinnati’s wonderful Maestro,
Louis Langrée. When asked the same question as Ms. Grimaud, he quickly
responded with a discussion on John Cage’s 4’33’’. Are you familiar with this
piece? Cage’s composition presents silence as music causing audiences to
wonder, “what really is music?” Maestro Langrée said that it is this type of “music”
that “forces you to think” and “provokes” a reaction.
Here
is a link to a performance of 4’33”. What does this “music” provoke you to
think? Is it indeed music?
