By Lyn Bronson
They say that some things get better with the passage of time. And then there are some things that just simply get better. A good example was Monday evening’s recital presented by the Carmel Music Society featuring violinist Cho-Liang Lin and pianist Li Jian. After an emotionally cool Beethoven and a somewhat restrained Prokofiev, the recital heated up after intermission with a smashing performance of Lutoslawski’s “Subito” and Richard Strauss’s Sonata in E-flat Major, Op. 18.
In the Beethoven Sonata No. 2 in A Major, Op. 12, No. 2, that opened the program, the performers played in fine Beethoven style. As originally published, Beethoven’s violin sonatas were designated for “Piano and Violin,” not “Violin and Piano.” Accordingly, it has increasingly become the custom for pianists to be recognized as equal ensemble partners (although the Carmel Music Society omitted pianist Li Jian’s name from the cover of the printed program) and ensemble pianists now more often play with the lid of the piano all the way up, not closed, as was the custom fifty years ago. There was no question that the performers considered each other as equal partners, and there was also no question that pianist Li Jian is a major pianist in his own right. Fleet of finger and commanding a wide range of dynamics, he is a formidable force at the keyboard.
