The Classical Review CDs/DVDs

At the age of 27, Augustin Hadelich may be well beyond an age at
which the words ‘Young’ and ‘Prodigy’ could seriously be uttered in close proximity, but this is a disc which simply bubbles over with youthful enthusiasm.

The combination of his unabashed high spirits and considerable musical maturity leads to a marvellously life-affirming account of
the Poulenc Sonata, while Prokofiev’s Second comes across with
an endearingly playful character that sets it apart from most other recordings, the delicate flights of fancy in the first movement executed with an almost impertinent nonchalance.

There is something almost childlike, too, about Hadelich’s booklet notes, reading more like a teen’s Facebook page (complete with jokey photograph taken in Paris on the aptly-named Rue des Grands Augustins) than a serious musical commentary. With such naïvely enthusiastic writing, it is easy to overlook the specious thread which links the four works in this recital. Hadelich connects them through the city of Paris, with each of the featured composers having spent some time in the French capital. The fact that the Prokofiev sonata is wholly Muscovite in origin and character – both in its initial manifestation as a Flute Sonata and its subsequent transformation into the splendid violin work we hear here – gets handily ignored.

Not that this matters one iota, for even if nothing at all linked these four works, three of them at least come across with such wonderful freshness and vitality that the performances themselves are ample justification for their inclusion on a single disc. Even the Poulenc slow movement oozes a sentimentality that is more in the nature of a tongue-in-cheek pastiche than the nostalgic reverie so many other violinists project.

The exception is Stravinsky’s Suite after Themes, Fragments and Pieces by Giambattista Pergolesi. While it is played – as is everything here – with astonishing precision, every note and nuance perfectly placed, it nonetheless manages to elude Hadelich’s musical personality.

His desire to avoid what he describes as the “toned-down” dissonances of the more customary arrangement of this music as the Suite Italienne seems to have left him without a clear idea of what the music is trying to say. He mentions that when he plays it he is “reminded of puppets,” but these puppets are very static and often seem to get their strings tangled. Apart from the lovely effects he produces from his instrument, especially his tremendous technical control with an infinitely varied dynamic palette, it all seems terribly aimless to me.

This performance of the Stravinsky does, however, deserve serious consideration for its exposé of the astonishing unity of approach and tautness of ensemble between Hadelich and his pianist, Robert Kulek; the ‘Tarantella’ movement is a dazzling object lesson in perfect ensemble playing.

No reservations at all with the other works here, the Debussy sonata poised, magical and possessed of a luminosity that is both deeply affecting and, at times, utterly magical.

One Response to “AUGUSTIN HADELICH and ROBERT KULEK – Echoes of Paris”

1. Posted Apr 16, 2011 at 10:56 am by Linda

   Although you are very positive about many things on Augustin Hadelich’s newest CD, and I am sure you are trying to be balanced by expressing some mild criticism, I don’t agree with your criticisms and would like to comment. I think if there is an innocence and freshness about Augustin’s recording notes and interpretation, in my opinion that is a good thing, not something to be critical of. I have tremendous admiration for his approach and for his resilience and enthusiasm. This is particularly amazing if one knows the personal obstacles Augustin has surmounted already in his 27 year old life, obstacles that probably would ground most of us. If you know his story, you know that he was a prodigy who almost had his career ended by a fire when he 15; it was unknown at first if he would even survive. Then there was much rehabilitation needed before he could play the violin as well as before the accident, because his bow arm and hand were severely burned. I know the purpose of your review is to specifically critique this recording, “Echoes of Paris,’ not to analyze the artist or his life, so maybe I am getting off topic a bit, but I think his freshness and enthusiasm are a very positive aspect of this recording, especially seen in light of what he has overcome. But I would in no way describe Augustin’s notes as naive, Augustin is not a shallow person, but seems rather to be a very strong and deeply resilient one. His fresh, even bubbly take on things is something needed, and something that I believe has enabled Augustin to reach out to a new and younger generation of concert goers and classical CD buyers, and that is a huge need! Yet the ‘Echoes’ recording is just one side of him; if you have also listened to ‘Flying Solo’, you would find he is equally able to explore the depths and passions and anguish expressed in the Bartok and Zimmerman sonatas on that recording. Augustin’s technically flawless approach is extremely deep and sensitive and intimate and mature, yet also so full of enthusiasm, that personally he brings me some hope for the future of the classical music concert community! For me he makes everything from Bach to Bartok captivating and very accessible, even though I am an older person myself.
   If you have never seen him perform, you must! And personally, I hope Augustin keeps his freshness, his enthusiasm, and the beauty, depth and intimacy of his interpretations for the rest of his life. Oh, and the Stravinsky Suite was actually my favorite on the CD!! It is so full of joyful creative energy, I never tire of listening to it! To me it is not aimless at all, rather very intriguing as it takes creative twists and turns, and has so many contrasts in the different sparkling sections of it.
   Thank you so much for your thoughtful reviews and your service to the classical music community!

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