SPIVAKOVSKY-KURTZ TRIO

Evening Star, Issue 22248, 28 January 1936, Page 13

SPIVAKOVSKY-KURTZ TRIO

ANOTHER ARRESTING PERFORMANCE

FINAL CONCERT TO-NIGHT

When Jascha and Tossy Spivakovsky and Edmund Kurtz conclude their second visit to Dunedin to-night they will leave behind then! a musical legacy tlie value of which cannot alone be measured in an appreciation of their art. They have attempted (and not unsuccessfully) to disarm the inexplicable suspicion directed at ch amber music. Thev have shown that their excursions in trio are full of exciting experiences which are beyond reach of those who prefer their music in solo or in orchestrated form. They have given every indication of superb virtuosity and of their status as one of the greatest trios in the world to-day. If the public has not altogether realised their Supreme merits, the fault has certainly not been with this gifted combination. For the second recital last night the Concert Chamber held a rather disappointing audience considering the intensely interesting nature of the programme and its perfect playing by the performers. The major vyork cif the evening, and the only one in which the members of the trio were associated, was the Beethoven ‘ B Flat Major, No. 4 ’ and it was accorded an impeccable reading, the three instruments producing a vibrant study of the composer in one of his more simple and subdued moods. To play effectively Bach’s ‘ Chaconne ’ is left to only the greatest violinists. Tossy Spivakovsky possesses that qualification, and he evidenced the wideness of his technical resources in an electrifying presentation of this amazingly difficult piece. His glori-ously-produced tone was flawless, every note being decisively crisp. His bowing

was perfect, enabling him to bound through the treble-stopping passages with almost great ease, and at the finish he appeared unaffected by an exhausting feat. His encore was a polished version of the ‘ Turkish March from Beethoven’s ‘ Ruins of Athens. Jascha Spivakovsky attained the pianist’s Parnassus in a masterly rendition of the immortal ‘ Carnaval ’ suite by Schumann. This gigantic work, with its intricately-woven tone pictures (there are 24), enabled him to sink his full individuality into his music and produce a series of beautifully defined etchings. It was an engrossing performance. Recalled, he played Chopin’s dancing ‘ Etude in F Minor.’ The concluding solo presentations of the concert were provided by Edmund Kurtz, that rare ’cello tonalist and faultless technician. He opened with VivaldiStutchewsky’s ‘ Largo,’ gloriously interpreted, and proceeded to further delights with examples of the modern school of composition, these being Faure’s ‘ Sicilienne.’ Gaspar Cassado’s ‘ llequichros,’ ‘ Habanera ’ by Ravel, and Pollonyi’s ‘ Scherzo Fantastique.’ His encore n'-esp- i " i: cu was ‘ Gavotte Tendre ’ (Hillmacher).

Noel Newsom again revealed himself ns an exceptionally gifted accompanist.

'• The * Ravel Trio ’ will be the principal work in the final Spivakovsky-Kurtz Trio recital in the Concert Chamber this evening, and Mr Tossy Spivakovsky’s solos will include Corelli’s ‘La Folia ’ and the majestic ‘ Prelude and Fugue in G Minor ’ by Bach. Mr Kurtz will play the delightful ‘ Violoncello Concerto in D Major,’ with cadenza by Pablo Casals, and Mr Jascha’s pianoforte solos will include * Arabesque ’ and ‘ Traumeswirren ’ (Schumann), ‘ Gfavotte ’ (Ghick-BraiiiiiM. ‘ Capriccio in B Minor ’ (Brahms), and the famous ‘ Etude in C Minor,’ Op. 25, No. 12 (Chopin).