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A foretaste of greater things - Maria Marchant in Darlington (and Angela Hewitt)

Having missed last season's concerts, I was determined to start well with the current selection of performances through Darlington Piano Society. A bright, sunny October afternoon on 12th found M and I in the Dolphin Centre for an afternoon of music by Maria Marchant. Definitely a name to watch, Maria opened the 2014 season with a very thoughtful programme 'Conflicts and Memories - The First World War' featuring a selection of works composed around the war years from French, Russian and British composers - Debussy, Ravel, Rachmaninov, Prokofiev and John Ireland. Maria chose to introduce each set of pieces before playing.

The concert was organised at the beginning with Debussy's Berceuse héroïque and Élégie, followed by Rachmaninov's Études-Tableaux, Op. 39 - Nos 8 and 5. Whilst these works were well performed, especially No. 8 of Rachmaninov's set, I felt Maria lacked a certain degree of stage presence. This was much improved, however, throughout the following three sets of pieces by John Ireland. Maria is a notable advocate of British music and this came through in her representation of Ireland's Rhapsody (1915); Ballade of London Nights; and London Pieces - Chelsea Reach/Ragamuffin/Soho Forenoons. The Rhapsody was full of waves and shimmers, lightness amongst its strength and power. Within the Ballade of London Nights, there was a mixture of city and rural idyll with a few Debussy-esque twists. To end the first half, we were treated to three lively and witty London Pieces.

The second half continued in the same mood with a strong performance of selected pieces from Prokofiev's Visions Fugitives, Op.22 - encompassing a whole range of emotions relating to war and a lost homeland. New works to my ears but very very interesting. 

To finish off the afternoon, we heard Ravel's Le tombeau de Couperin and here the level dropped. Like the start of the recital, not a bad performance but perhaps lacking a bit of conviction. This is in comparison to Alexandra Dariescu's recital earlier this year, in which the wholeness of the performance was more consistent.

Also announced at the recital was a special concert in memory of Dave Robson, who was a founding member of Darlington Piano Society. Who to perform - none less than Angela Hewitt. Very much excited! The date has been set as Sunday 15th March 2015 (venue as the Dolphin Centre), with further details to come shortly.       
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