{TABLE} Sonata in A minor for Arpeggione and Piano, D821 .......... Schubert Three Little Pieces, Op. 11 ............................... Wehern Introduction and Polonaise in C, Op.3 ..................... Chopin Sonata No 2 in F for Cello and Piano, Op. 99 .............. Brahms {/TABLE} SCHUBERT'S sonata for the short lived Arpeggione (a mixture of cello and guitar) is probably the greatest piece in the repertoire of that instrument. It was arranged for cello after the composer's death and players have enjoyed its guileless flow of melody, but it is far from being one of Schubert's greatest pieces.
Lynn Harrell (cello) and Michel Dalberto (piano) loaded it with expressive detail in their recital in the NCH last Saturday. This had the effect of dressing a kitten in an elaborate costume or putting make up on a child's face - the innocence was gone.
The misplaced sophistication was admirably suited for the Three Little Pieces by Webern. Their austere avoidance of conventional tune, harmony, structure and other aids to easy listening demands the utmost expression, then a speech is compressed into an exclamation, the performance must be telling, and so it was.
Chopin's Introduction and Polonaise was an exhilarating and good humoured party piece: one could easily imagine Chopin's compatriots stamping vigorously in their national dance. The duo presented it in appropriately full blooded fashion.
The climax of the recital as Brahms's Sonata No 2.
Lynn Harrell had no difficulty in holding the listeners' attention all the way through.
The cello seemed to sing of its own volition, awoken by the cellist's bow. This was a great solo performance but the sonata needs two players of equal stature and on this occasion, the pianist was not the equal of his partner.
The piano never summoned the attention in the way the cello did. It was not a matter of balance, more a case of an expansive musical personality casting too great a shadow.