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Wednesday, November 16, 2005A little music...I just ran across Hilary Hahn's latest, a selection of Mozart sonatas for piano and violin. These are recorded with her longtime recital partner, Natalie Zhu. The album is, of course, a delight. While some of Mozart, notably the Allegro from the F major sonata (first track on the disc) can be a bit too, well, bright, on the whole he is a marvel, and Hahn and Zhu's interpretation bring this out. If the Allegro from the F maj is a bit too lively - hopping bunny syndrome, one might suggest - the Rondeau is just plain fun to listen to. The most moving piece on the album, for those who like their classical music serious, is the E min, written at the time of the death of Mozart's mother. The music is in parts as melancholy as Mozart must have been, yet the piece on the whole marches resolutely forward, even managing a few chipper moments, though these fall away into bittersweet meditations rather quickly. But there is something in the prevailing motif of the first movement that declares, this too shall pass. The second movement meanders along like an aspiring writer wandering Paris streets while wondering if the world will ever recognize his genius, then picks up the pace as soon as the baguette he has been munching is gone. If you go for that sort of metaphor. In any case, it makes for good listening while seeking the deeper meaning of life. Which leaves us with a piece that still resonates 250 years after the beginning of the Mozart era. Those seeking truly coherent and insightful remarks on the album's content are advised to look at Ms. Hahn's liner notes, which are full of fascinating information about Mozart, music and performance and utterly devoid of anthropomorphistic music metaphors - or is it similes? 
posted by gbarto at 2:05 AM |
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