Although Nelson Freire is a much acclaimed pianist enjoying sold out halls everywhere in Europe and South America, he is relatively unknown to audiences in the United States (although revered by pianists), except as an occasional duo partner with Martha Argerich. While he may not yet be universally recognized as a super star, it is clear that he has mini-cult status here, for approximately 500 enthusiastic fans turned out at Herbst Theater in San Francisco to hear a program similar to the one he performed in New York City last week.
Immediately preceding the recital, a representative of the presenting organization, Chamber Music San Francisco, came out on stage to remind us that this recital represented Nelson Freire’s solo debut appearance in San Francisco. He also announced a program substitution, for instead of opening with Mozart’s Sonata in A Major, K.311, he would open instead with Schumann’s Papillons.
Walking out on stage slowly and somberly, Mr. Freire managed only the suggestion of a smile in greeting the audience before sitting down to play. His performance of the Schumann was technically stunning, if occasionally overplayed. Sometimes missing were some of the delicate varieties of color and pianissimo that can make this piece so magical, nevertheless there were moments of enchantment, especially in the last few pages, as the piece slowly unwound and evaporated mysteriously off into the ether.
The following work, the Brahms Sonata No. 2 in F-sharp Minor. Op. 2, is a work rarely performed. On this occasion it received a stunning performance, and it was a revelation! Totally in command, Freire made the difficult passages seem like child’s play and managed to inject a level of intensity that was totally compelling. Although it is a long and complicated work, this sonata did not seem long in Freire’s hands, so logical and inevitable was his performance. Positively Lisztian (and sometimes Wagnerian), Freire’s playing revealed new meanings and charm and convinced us that this work is unjustly neglected.
After intermission we heard a Chopin group that included the Barcarolle, two Mazurkas and the Scherzo No. 4 in E Major. His performance of the Barcarolle was big and solid, with a lovely spinning our of the work’s major themes and a stunning dramatic wind up in its final pages. A major surprise was his imposing, almost larger-than-life, performance of the Mazurka in C-sharp Minor, Op. 41, No. 1 – this was so bold and imaginative, it was almost like an Ignaz Friedman performance, but even more audacious and more personal. After a lovely and tender performance of the Mazurka in A Minor, Op. Posth., Freire blew us away with his bold and impetuous playing of the fourth Scherzo.
After the Chopin Freire performed three Debussy Preludes, Les sons et les parfums tournent dans l’air du soir, Les collines d’Anacapri and Minstrels. These were compelling performances full of color and refinement. The way he brought out the lovely theme in the bass during the middle section of Les collines d’Anacapri was so beautifully controlled and shaped it was difficult to imagine it played any better.
The recital ended with two works by Villa-Lobos, Alma Brasileira and Dança do Ãndio Branco, and here Freire spun his final magic of the evening and in the process convinced us there is hardly anybody alive today who can play the works of Villa-Lobos any better than he can. During the final applause and lots of “bravos”, an unidentified gentleman came up to the edge of the stage and offered Freire a single red rose. After prolonged applause, Freire returned to the piano (wearing the red rose in his lapel) and awarded the audience three encores: Gluck’s “Dance of the Blessed Spirits” from Orfeo (in the arrangement by Sgambatti) and unidentified works by Villa-Lobos and Mompou.
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