By David Beech

(Editor’s Note: Because of a scheduling conflict, I asked David Beech to review the following concert. Mr. Beech is a retired computer scientist who lives in Monterey. He is a clarinetist and occasional pianist. His mother was a pianist who brought him up to revere the playing of Solomon. Other great pianists that he has heard and admired over the years include Cortot, Myra Hess, Arrau, Katchen, Curzon, Brendel, Lupu, Ashkenazy, Cherkassky, and Perahia.)

The Russian pianist Maxim Phillipov (the Van Cliburn 2001 Silver Medalist) gave a commanding performance on Sunday evening, March 30, at Le Petit Trianon, San Jose, for the Steinway Society The Bay Area. His mastery of the keyboard was complete, and his interpretations were strongly shaped although tending to lack restraint – the climaxes were numerous, and he often carried his subjugation of the piano beyond the limits of tonal beauty. 

Phillipov began his program with Mozart’s C major Sonata K.330, and followed this with Schumann’s Carnaval which received an ovation at its bravura conclusion. The quick movements were played with excellent fingerwork without superfluous motion, and the slow and dreamy movements were poised without quite revealing the delicate poetry that great Schumann interpreters such as Richter and Ashkenazy have found in them. 

Continue Reading »