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It is surprising to me how much volume a piano and a cello can produce, or it at least it seemed so on Friday when the Harriman-Jewell Series presented the Venezuelan pianist Gabriela Montero and the French cellist Gautier Capuçon in a joint recital at the Folly Theater.

Both artists attack their instruments with gusto, resulting in a flow of sound that at times seemed almost like a full orchestra onstage. I wondered if they felt as though they were in competition to see who could produce the most volume.

This approach served fairly well in Prokofiev’s Cello Sonata in C major—a late work of the composer’s career—featuring surprising tonality and Romantic fervor, given the backdrop of Prokofiev’s earlier, more angular works. Of course, by this stage (the early 1950s) the composer was under severe attack from the Stalin regime for his unacceptably modern compositions, so he was toeing a narrow line, with remarkable success, between being true to his musical instincts and catering at least somewhat to the nationalistic demands of the dictatorship.

The Prokofiev opened with a rich cello melody with sparing commentary by the piano, and Capuçon responded with a full-bodied attack. By the third movement it was the pianist’s turn to shine, and Montero responded with brilliant playing of the most sharply dissonant and syncopated music of the piece. The sonata ended with a sweeping melody as Romantic as anything Prokofiev ever wrote, probably to please the critics. Frankly, it pleased the audience as well.

Mendelssohn’s Cello Sonata No. 2 in D major should be a calmer, more reflective work, but Montero and Capuçon gave it as vigorous an interpretation as the Prokofiev, drowning out the subtle moments. They made up in technical prowess for what the performance lacked in musicality. The second movement’s broad cello melody accompanied by broken chord piano accompaniment is the highlight of this beautiful work, and it all ends with a spirited presto which brought out the highly proficient playing of both instrumentalists.

The second half of the recital consisted of Rachmaninoff’s Cello Sonata in G minor, an expressive work in which the pair showed their finest playing of the evening. In the first movement a haunting melody was tossed back and forth between the instruments, then broken into smaller motives and played by each in turn. Both recitalists showed themselves capable of carrying off the broad, sweeping phrases which this work requires.

The second movement of the Rachmaninoff contains some of the transcendently beautiful music from any cello sonata, and Capuçon and Montero played the strains beautifully, with propulsive energy and all the passion (perhaps a bit more) that one could ask for. The final movement drew out their most expressive playing of the recital, as performers and audience alike were seduced by the beauty of these emotive melodies. It all ended with a vigorous presto, elbows and hair flying, for which the pair were perfectly suited.

For an encore, they played a cello transcription of a movement from Rachmaninoff’s classic Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, one of the great melodies in all of classical music, which proved to be just the popular crowd pleaser they presumably intended.

Montero and Capuçon have great technical proficiency and are capable of spirited performances. I would like to hear these young players again in a few years, when perhaps they will have absorbed more of the subtleties of these compositions and present a broader range of emotional reflection. Impressive now, they will indeed be formidable at that juncture.

REVIEW
Harriman-Jewell Series
Gautier Capuçon and Gabriela Montero
Friday, November 5, 2010 at 8 pm
Folly Theater
12th and Central
Kansas City, MO
For more information visit http://www.hjseries.org

By Don Dagenais

City Classics Music and Dance Columnist; Classical Contributor

A lifelong classical music fan, Don Dagenais is a frequent preview speaker for the Lyric Opera of Kansas City and has taught classical music and opera courses at several Kansas City venues. He has served on the boards of directors of a number of performing arts organizations including the Lyric Opera of Kansas City, the Lyric Opera Guild, UMKC Conservatory of Music and Dance, Opera Volunteers International, the Civic Opera Theater of Kansas City, Inspiration Point Fine Arts Colony, Octarium, and the Friends of the Symphony.  He has been the past president of most of these organizations and is current the president of the Friends of the Symphony. 

Dagenais co-authored a history of the Lyric Opera of Kansas City, published on the occasion of its 50th anniversary (2007) and has written books on the histories of both the Lyric Opera Guild and Opera Volunteers International, as well as an introductory book for opera novices (Your Passport to the Opera).  He has received several local and national awards for outstanding volunteer work for the arts, including a lifetime achievement award from The Coterie Theatre in 2000, the Kansas City Musical Club's annual award in 2001, a Partners in Excellence Award from Opera Volunteers International in 2002, a Bravo Award from Opera Volunteers International in 2004 and a community service award from the Daughter of the American Revolution in 2008 honoring him for his community service to the arts.

In addition to his music interests, Don is president of the board of directors for the Metropolitan Ensemble Theater and has served on the boards of The Coterie Theatre and the Heart of America Shakespeare Festival, serving as president of each organization.  He publishes newsletters for seven arts organizations.  When not involved in the performing arts, Don is a senior real estate attorney with Lathrop & Gage LLP in Kansas City, Missouri, where he has practiced law since 1976 after graduating from the Cornell Law School.