Concert Performance: Prokofiev’s Concerto No. 3, Opus 26 Recited by Yuhao Chen
I was an active listener at the concert. I was lucky to observe most of the details from the comfort of my laptop. I was keen to listen for chord progressions, meter changes, dynamic changes, changes in key, harmonic balance and orchestrations. When the performance ended, I was able to comprehend the piece and even discuss the music in detail.
Differences with compositions of earlier periods
Chen’s recital of the third piano concerto, Opus 26, has gathered the greatest critical and popularity acclaim. From the beginning of the first theme, the concerto recital radiated a clear vitality testifying Prokofiev’s inventive genius in punctuating musical passages with industrious dissonances. At the same time, Chen maintains a balanced linkage between the orchestra and soloist. Compared to examples of concertos set by several Prokofiev’s Romantic composers, the orchestra recital levitates above subsidiary auxiliary to play a significant portion of the work. It insinuates the act of using the piano as an instrument that provides the melody instead of rhythm.
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Analysis of the Concert
The pianist manifested physical approach to the performance through her sitting position and movement of hands across the keyboard. Variations in the movements and physical approach explain the effective performance describing how melody was developed in the performance. The orchestra managed to create perfection by following how Chen, in this case the soloist, introduced rhythm and harmony in the recital. The critique of movements and their impacts are described in the preceding paragraphs.
The second theme was introduced by the orchestra after which was expanded by the soloist. I consider it to be more ambiguous and dissonant in tonality. This impacts what is most commonly recognized as a pianist feat for the movement seen when piano makes a grand entry into the orchestral act. I identified a number of octave lines interspersing with close tones above and below as described in a rhythm with triplet features. This follows a down and up movement on the keyboard with arms or hands often on top of the other.
The second movement design in the recital refers to a descriptive term known as Tema con variazioni . It described the movement in E-minor – a theme in the middle movement with five variations. This is a dazzling example of Chen recital expressing her slight sarcasm prowess in musical terms. Second variation was indicated by a galloping pace in the orchestra. This is achieved with a piano provision of an excitement with long runs down and up the keyboard. Variation reported in the third place was a syncopated deformation of the main theme characterized by a jazzy beat that lumbers.
The part of the performance I liked less is the fourth variation of the second movement. I consider the fourth variation in the second movement style as the most wandering, haunting, and famous meditation upon the main theme. It is executed with a free dialog between the orchestra and piano. In this case, there is a continuous motif of ethereal, cold falling thirds by the piano adding to the faintly or other other-wordly mood created by this section. Fifth variation is a romp of allegro for orchestra and soloist, beginning in a higher/sunny major with a modulation into transitional water.
Best section of the performance
The best section that I liked most is the final movement of the concerto. Virtuous characteristic of the recital is seen through the movements between C-major, G-major and finally into C-major. C-major defines the final movement (third) – Allegrom, ma non troppo - which the original composer, Prokofiev, described as an “argument” between orchestra and soloist. Chen begins the ending C-major with a statement of the A-minor of the main theme in pizzicato and bassoons strings. The piano’s interruptive entrance marks the conflicting theme of the A-minor statement. I notice a steam build-up in the interplay between the orchestra and piano with a brief heightening of tempo. This foreshadowed the lengthy Coda prior to arriving at a gradual and lyrical woodwind’s secondary theme.
In conclusion, the features of the recital have enabled me to analyze the concerto in order to understand the merits and loose points of Prokofiev’s Opus 26. There are some parts of the performance I did not like because I felt they dwelt more on the haunting and sad mood of music composition. However, the effectiveness of the entire piece was commendable. The performance defines an idea that is no sooner introduced than abandoned. This is indicated by the occasion where strings motion set the Exposition with a scalar passage that gradually rises. The whole process explains the structural composition of the entire movement.
