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Music

Predictably powerful

By ZACHARY LEWIS
Published August 27, 2006

It's not hard to believe Olga Kern won the 2001 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition. If the Russian-born pianist played anything like she does on this Chopin disc, her fifth recording, she must have been a shoo-in at the prestigious contest. She shared the Cliburn gold medal with Stanislav Ioudenitch.

Kern's performance of the Piano Concerto No. 1 is a rare treat. With exceptional sensitivity, she extracts every bit of the music's emotional content without making any technical compromises. There's an amazing clarity to the sound. Each note is full and rounded, evenly spaced from its neighbors. Unlike much Chopin playing, there's also muscle behind Kern's fingers. These traits alone make for a surprisingly concentrated first movement as the pianist maintains an illuminating forward vision through even the thickest development. Further lofty delights unfold in the second movement. Phrasing is faultlessly smooth, yet Kern also varies the stress patterns at certain pregnant points, thus manipulating expectation and evoking thrilling little shudders. All is springy good fun as she zips through the finale's Rondo at full tilt. What might sound like rushing in other hands sounds perfectly natural and assured coming from her.

Four substantial solo pieces round out the disc more than amply. Two are relative rarities: the Fantasy in F Minor Op. 49 and the Bolero Op. 19. Deep reserves of strength come into play for Kern in the boiling, ferocious Fantasy. And forget about Ravel when it comes to the Bolero. Unlike that steady ascent to an orchestral explosion, Chopin's take on the Spanish dance is light and unpredictable. Once again, Kern makes an ideal interpreter, hustling through this entertaining showpiece with the same compelling clarity she brought to the concerto. The Cliburn competition was just the beginning.

- ZACHARY LEWIS, Times correspondent

Audio FIles Chopin: Piano Concerto No. 1 and other works; Olga Kern, piano; Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra/Antoni Wit, conductor (Harmonia Mundi); A+

[Last modified August 25, 2006, 09:24:56]