The idea that a musical performance must be full of fireworks and usually loud to be satisfying– think of your average rock concert, or even the Seattle Symphony’s program last week—is negated in the person of violinist Hilary Hahn.
There is nothing flamboyant about Hahn, her demeanor, her dress, her playing style. She walks out on stage and she plays. Simple as that. Even her acceptance of applause is low-key.
Yet you don’t forget her performance.
Thursday’s recital at Benaroya Hall with pianist Valentina Lisitsa is a perfect example. First, the program was unusual, artfully designed with pieces many would never have heard before. She juxtaposed sonatas by Ysaye and Ives, none commonly heard and requiring careful listening( the Ives in particular), and followed up with Brahms’ Hungarian dances and Bartok’s Romanian ones, mostly familiar and colorful.
Both the Ysaye sonatas, Nos. 4 and 6 from 1924, are for unaccompanied violin and are filled with double stopping, that is, playing on two strings at once so you can have harmony or a duet on one instrument. Ysaye wrote each in homage to an important violinist whose characteristics come through strongly, thus No. 4 is flavored with techniques of Fritz Kreisler and No. 6 is steeped in the Spain of Manuel Quiroga, relatively unknown to us.
The Ives’ sonatas, Nos 1, 2, and 4 are with piano, but they too employ considerable double stopping. What was so striking about these performances was Hahn’s approach. It would be so easy to make these into “Look at my incredible technique and listen to me striking sparks from the music!” performances.
They do need incredible technique, but you wouldn’t know it from Hahn. She just played them, unearthing the music and its emotions, often playing very softly but with infinite expressivity. She used her vibrato as an ornament, not something which begins at the first note and continues unchanged until the end of the piece. Sometimes she used almost none, and she varied it at other times so that it colored the notes and added to the expression but she never let it be taken for granted. This was particularly notable in another Ysaye piece, the gentle “Reve d’enfant.”
Also, through this entire concert, Hahn never made a scratchy sound. Her bow moved smoothly or fast, articulated or legato, and and there was never a hiatus as she switched from up- to downbow. All we heard was the lovely tone she produced, though there was nothing mushy about it.
In a total switch or gears, her Brahms and Bartok had one itching to get up and dance to her full, lively playing.
Although attention was glued to Hahn, her accompanist Lisitsa (or, as one teacher used to put it, her collaborative pianist, a much more correct appellation for those who accompany singers and instumentalists) is a very fine player in her own right with a substantial career. Despite the piano lid being at full height, she matched Hahn in intensity and volume so that the two played as interweaving instruments, two equal halves of a duet.
As encore, after the audience brought the pair back several times, they played Paganini’s “Cantabile.” Hahn changed styles completely to one that was lush, full of vibrato, late romantic playing. Again, it was gorgeous. What a treat, and what a pleasure to see such a big audience enthusastically appreciating a concert which wasn’t spectacular, wasn’t loud, wasn’t flashy in any way, and contained many young people including children.
Philippa Kiraly
Very nice review. After having seen a documentary on Hilary Hahn on the Ovation channel, I have to agree with your assessments of her demeanor and careful attention to the music. She is definitely a wonderful musician.