Duo Pleyel – Richard Egarr and Alexandra Nepomnyashchaya (fortepiano), Mozart’s Real Musical Father, Sir Jack Lyons Concert Hall, University of York
I THOUGHT Duo Pleyel’s programme title, Mozart’s Real Musical Father, was a bit of a stretch, but it turned out to be an inspired one.
The pieces in the programme were composed between 1772 and 1786 and showcase the early developmental years of the piano duet, as well as musically documenting the unlikely, or rather, little known, friendship between Mozart and JC Bach [German composer Johann Christian Bach, youngest son of Johann Sebastian Bach].
Bach was a major composer at this time and clearly a major influence on the young Mozart, but his music seems to have been relegated to the second division by both history and fashion. So the chance to hear these two sonatas was very welcome and illuminating.
Both performances displayed the relative simplicity, elegance and immediacy we expect from the reactionary style galant, a modern style that gives primacy on melody and harmony overcomplex counterpoint. But the works were very different in character.
The Sonata in F, op 18, no.6 was indeed “full of unbridled fun and playful virtuosity”. The music positively zipped along with the players knocking ideas back and forth; the communication between the two came across as simply instinctive. A real feature throughout the concert performance.
It was also inspired, resulting in creative decorative enrichment and even ‘unwritten’ cadenzas. Was this genuinely an in-the-moment thing? I don’t know, but it sounded like it.
Having said that, I actually preferred the Sonata in A, op 18, no.5. It just radiated with tenderness. And who wouldn’t be seduced by those gorgeous extended cadences.
The concert opened with Mozart’s early Sonata in D K.381. What struck me here was the dramatic exploitation of the contrasting register and dynamics. It was almost symphonic – loud ‘orchestral’ tuttis etc. But then Mozart was not only an instinctive ‘operatic’ composer, it was also in his DNA.
Richard Egarr is not only an exceptional musician, he is also an excellent communicator, albeit a slightly whacky one. A self-confessed Trekkie, who performs regularly “all over the planet”, presumably Earth, he engages with the audience in a singularly unique manner.
There was an early window (after the Mozart) into the pedalling on this distinguished 1848 Pleyel piano with a parallel drawn with the state-of-the-art IPhone16. He even threw in a reference to Karl Marx just for good measure.
I suppose the standout performance must have been Mozart’s Variations in G, K 501. The theme had echoes of The Magic Flute; the ‘miserable’ 4th variation was so engaging with heartfelt, touching exchanges.
But it was the signing off – the incredible use of the piano’s sordino lever, leaving the music disappearing into the mist – that was so telling. Haunting and quite magical. As indeed, was the playing in the Adagio of the Sonata in Bb, K. 358 where it just melted into the ears.
The musical chemistry between Richard Egarr and Alexandra Nepomnyashchaya was palpable and the concert performance sounded like a shared intimacy. This was further enhanced by the natural charm and communicative skills of Mr Egarr himself, who included the audience as a genuine part of the concert experience.
Review by Steve Crowther
