Quasi Una Fantasia

It’s important that the Melbourne Festival offers cutting-edge art, and this event, presented by Speak Percussion and the Melbourne Recital Centre, certainly delivered on that score. The artists argue that ‘Fantasia’ has been used for 500 years to describe creative musical ideas and that very early, the term was used for keyboard compositions that were ‘both inventive and imaginative’. Hence the central importance of the keyboard to this concert – including mechanical piano, toy piano, forte piano and pianoforte. Speak Percussion was fortunate indeed in having that champion of contemporary piano performance, Michael Kieran Harvey, to realise its vision. Harvey may more often be found teaching than performing in recent years, but his passion and brilliance continue to inspire composers like Carl Vine and Nigel Westlake – and others whose names are yet to be as familiar. Among them may be three Australian composers who were not only represented at this concert, but were present to take their bows. There was enough interest in a challenging program to fill the Salon at the Melbourne Recital Centre for two sessions to hear Harvey and three members of Speak Percussion, with instruments like the vibraphone, marimba and xylophone adding to the number and variety of keyboards on stage. Silence played a significant part in the program, beginning with audience anticipation before the opening Player Piano Study No.18 by Colin Nancarrow. It was eerie watching the instrument ‘play itself’ and the playful piece went on a little long for some listeners. This work appeared in a different guise later in the program when the focus was on the lovely resonance of Harvey’s fortepiano, in music that was self-consciously exploratory but none the less enjoyable for that. Another Nancarrow Piano Study (No.31) was a showpiece for all four players as it segued from a South American sound to polyphony and a fast, showy finish. Exceptional technical expertise was called for in works by Rohan Drape, Adam Simmons and Iannis Xenakis, whose Evryali for solo piano was a highlight of the night. Harvey literally put his whole body into the performance of a high-speed, percussive and technically almost impossible work. Rach 3 it might not be (in terms of accessibility) but Evryali can be played with as much power and intensity as great 19th century piano works – and perhaps signals the future for keyboard composition. As for the quieter pieces, we had La Monte Young’s Piano Piece for David Tudor No.1 for piano, hay and a bucket of water – fortunately, keeping its three main elements separate – and John Cage’s landmark 4’33’’, the ultimate in respectful silence. Helmut Lachemann’s Guero was Harvey’s chance to create the illusion of a ‘prepared piano’ – and Permutation City by Chris Dench, with its series of anagrams, was for mallet keyboards. It was far from being just a clever work. Speak Percussion moved between instruments, creating many effects as the work increased in complexity. The effect was almost hypnotic and quite entrancing – and may have won over the few remaining audience members who had thought the program might be too ‘out there’ for comfort. This may not be music that will be played as often as older works in the classical repertoire, but it is work that deserves to be heard. And tonight’s performers deserve to be seen as they execute their craft with such dexterity and passion. Rating: 4 stars out of 5 Quasi Una Fantasia Speak Percussion Artistic Director: Eugene Ughetti Performers: Peter Neville, Matthias Schack-Arnott, Leah Scholes, Eugene Ughetti Guest Soloist: Michael Kieran Harvey John Cage 4.33’ Helmut Lachenmann: Guero for solo piano Rohan Drape: See hearer clearer for mechanical piano, percussion & electronics * Iannis Xenakis: Evryali for solo piano Adam Simmons: Pandora’s Box for eight music boxes and toy piano * Chris Dench: Permutation City for marimbas, vibraphone and crotales * La Monte Young: Piano piece for David Tudor no. 1 for piano, hay and a bucket of water Conlon Nancarrow: Player Piano Studies (arr. Speak Percussion) for various keyboard instruments * World Premiere Melbourne Recital Centre, Salon Tuesday 23 October Melbourne Festival 11 – 27 October