American pianist Charlie Albright was invited back by popular demand to perform at the Grosse Pointe War Memorial, under the auspices of Pro Musica of Detroit. Dressed dashingly in a blue suit, he began with a short piece not on the program – his arrangement of Mozart’s Rondo alla Turk.
Affable and personable, he prefers to be called Charlie.
The first work on the program proper was perhaps the most recognizable sonata from Beethoven’s middle period, the Moonlight Sonata, No. 14 in c-sharp minor opus 27.
According to Wikipedia, “many sources say that the nickname Moonlight Sonata arose after the German music critic and poet Ludwig Rellstab likened the effect of the first movement to that of moonlight shining upon Lake Lucerne.”
He played the first movement, Adagio sostenuto, with a sensitivity rarely heard on the solo piano circuit these days, with beautifully shaped phrases and nice long cadences. Life was breathed into the second movement, Allegretto and the third movement, Presto agitato.
Charlie pointed out the irony of how popular this piece is, and the fact that it is rarely performed live. In the spirit of full disclosure, I have never heard it live, notwithstanding a student recital back in my undergrad days, at the university of Georgia.
It was refreshing to hear it on a professional concert series.
Next, Charlie gave another heartfelt reading of Myra Hess’s arrangement of Bach’s Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring, a work that is maybe even more well known than the Moonlight Sonata, but performed regularly in concert settings, ranging from the original Cantata to just about any instrument ensemble imaginable.
Music like this resonates around the globe. You could probably play it for an audience in just about any Muslim country or African nation who have absolutely no idea who Jesus is, and they would connect with it. A true testament to the power of music, especially Bach’s.
The pianist gave a stunning performance of this piece with perfect balance – we could hear the melody, the melodic bass line and all of the inner voices.
Next Charlie interpolated into the program a long improvisation of several themes, one of them operatic.
The first half of the program ended with a solo version of Rhapsody in Blue by American composer George Gershwin. The raison d’etre of presenting this solo version (originally composed with full orchestra) was to underscore and point out to the audience parts of the music that might have gotten lost in the underbrush of the orchestra.
He did a fine job of this.
After the intermission, the pianist opened the room for questions.
The second half of the program was completely improvised on-the-spot by Mr. Albright, using notes suggested by the audience. From these, he composed and performed an approximately 30-minute sonata completely from scratch. The notes were B-flat, C, A, F-sharp.
Nota bene: Charlie stated that he began the piano by playing totally by ear and improvising. It was not until his teenage years that his parents encouraged him to take formal lessons.
After a standing ovation, he mentioned to the audience that sometimes classical music can be “hoity-toity” and proceeded to play “Great balls of Fire” as an encore.