Nikolai Demidenko review by Harold W. Mead (From This is The West Country)

Nikolai Demidenko review by Harold W. Mead

10:16am Tuesday 9th February 2010

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IT was gratifying to see a sold-out Brewhouse for the recital by Nikolai Demidenko, one of the hottest names in the piano world today. His repertoire and reputation are huge, and I was ready to be overwhelmed.

In the event I was, but I found his very mannered and rubato-full openings to the Beethoven Op.78 and Pathetique Sonatas a little overdone – however when he took off like a rocket in the first Allegro Molto of the latter work, the sonic experience was truly thrilling. A concert which includes not just the Pathetique but also the even more popular Moonlight Sonata has to be something special and these performances were just that. The finale of the Moonlight was stunning – every note clearly articulated but with skilful use of the pedal to generate a wall of solid sound.

After the interval, Nikolai turned to Chopin, and demonstrated his obvious love of that composer’s music. Chopin’s final polonaise, the A flat Op. 61 was given a masterly reading, as were the two Nocturnes from Op.48. But it was the Sonata No. 2 with its famous, not to say notorious Funeral March (yes, that one) which was the summit of the evening. We heard pianism of the highest order and the applause was rapturous.

This gentle giant of the keyboard then gave us two lovely encores, one by Scarlatti, which showed just what a master of all forms of piano music this man is. My early misgivings were forgotten – this was wonderful music making.

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