Flute, guitar recital

Press, 22 October 1983, Page 8

Flute, guitar recital

Thomas Pinschof (flutes) and Jochen Schubert (guitar), presented by the Arts Centre of Christchurch at the Centre Gallery, October 21, 8 p.m. Reviewed by Philip Norman.

That the flute and guitar are a pleasing combination is widely accepted as musical fact Surprisingly, though, the opportunities to

hear these instruments in tandem are rare, supposedly because of the lack of repertoire. Last evening’s concert by Thomas Pinschof (flutes) and Jochen Schubert (guitar) gave the lie to this notion, with a programme that was notable for its breadth and variety of material. The first half of the concert was devoted to the classics, the second to the “pops.” It was in this lighter vein that the duo were at their best The-most striking aspect of Thomas Pinschofs playing is the wide range of colour he has at his fingertips. In Dvorak’s “Humoresque,” the flute as- ■ a rich, pastoral clan-

net tone, while in de Falla’s “Spanish Dance” from “La Vida Breve,” a parched, double-reed sound dominated. The flat horizontal tones of some ancient instrument came to the fore

in “Distribuciao de Flores” by Villa Lobos, and a very boozy, untamed piccolo was featured th Johann Strauss’s “Tritsch Tratsch Polka.”

These pieces, along with other miniatures by Schubert, Dvorak, Brahms, Barrios, and Chopin comprised the entertaining second half of the programme. In this, excellent rapport was established between the players, and with the audience during the long spoken introductions to each item. This lively “pops” presentation stood in marked contrast to the pedestrian classics of the first half. In works such as Francesco Mancini’s Sonata No. 12-in G major and J. S. Bach’s Sonata in E minor the partnership of the instruments was often loose, and the tone of the flute frequently breathy and uneven. Despite |she steadying influence of

Jochen Schubert’s well-con-sidered guitar playing, Thomas Pinschofs flute would often jrace off at a tangent, glossing over fine details and blurring embellishments.

It was good that the duo thought to include a work by a New Zealand composer in their programme—“ Sonata for Flautino (G major flute) and Guitar” by Michael Calvert. Unfortunately, this work offered little of interest for the first-time listener. It was in an admirably modern idiom and contained an occasional clever idea, but was, in general, overly long and too disjointed to be satisfying. In defence of the performers, the mechanics of the concert were not to their advantage. They set on a rickety stage m a hot-house room with inadequate lighting by which to read the music. That Thomas Pinschof and Jochen Schubert met these obstacles with good cheer and provided some moments of fine and enjoyable is to their credit.