FOM CONCERT: JENNY STERN AND EMMANUEL BACH

English mother and son duo prove that they are technically accomplished and artistically sensitive. (Review by Michael Green)

The English mother and son duo of Jenny Stern (piano) and Emmanuel Bach (violin) are well known in Durban because of their concert appearances here and because Jenny Stern comes from this part of the world and is a graduate of the University of Natal.

Predictably, there was a good-sized audience for this recital for the Friends of Music at the Durban Jewish Centre. The listeners were not disappointed. In a programme ranging from Mozart to Stravinsky, both players showed that they are technically accomplished and artistically sensitive - and of course they have a strong accord in their musical partnership.

Emmanuel Bach is only 16 years old and since his last appearance here, he has clearly matured musically and personally. He is still a slight, boyish figure on the platform, but he often showed an interpretative insight remarkable in one so young and of course he had the support of a pianist of great skill and experience.

Cesar Franck’s Violin Sonata provided the big moments of the evening. I think it fair to say that in spite of his piety and worthy aspirations, Cesar Franck was a gifted composer rather than a truly great one, but this violin sonata is his finest achievement and is indeed one of the high points of 19th century music.

It is a long and taxing work, and Jenny Stern and Emmanuel Bach gave a full-blooded performance, extracting full value from Franck’s rich contrapuntal themes. The music is turbulent at times (and difficult) but the prevailing mood is romantic, as befits a work that was written for the wedding of the celebrated violinist Eugene Ysaye who, like Franck, was born in Liege in Belgium.

The players were rewarded with prolonged applause at the end.

Stravinsky’s Suite Italienne provided music of a very different kind. This is an arrangement by Albert Spalding of extracts from Stravinsky’s ballet Pulcinella, written in 1920 and based on music by the 18th century composer Pergolesi. Pulcinella is a wonderful work, but I was not greatly impressed by this arrangement, which seemed rather thin and spare when compared with the orchestration of the original. Be that as it may, the playing was first-rate, with admirable balancer between the two performers.

One of Mozart’s 37 sonatas for violin and piano (K454 in B flat major) and some lighter works by Wieniawski, Debussy, Falla and Sarasate completed a varied and attractive programme.

The prelude performer of the evening funded by the National Lottery, was Edward Phiri, a baritone studying opera at the University of KwaZulu-Natal. In songs by Schubert, Mozart and Donizetti he displayed a good powerful voice with accurate intonation and a sense of the dramatic. And he had the assistance of an expert accompanist, the concert pianist Andrew Warburton. - Michael Green