Last Saturday, PSC hosted the 20th Century Piano Festival consisting of performances, various music activities and one master class, culminating at the end of the day with a concert. The concert showcased a few of the best local high school students and some of PSC’s music majors. Among the performers were Robert St. Cyr, Irene Gilb, Erica Picciano, Angela Olszta, Nathan Burcalow, Leon Lackiram, Jennifer Huang, Kyu Ryung Hwang, Carl Wishneusky and Daniel Formidoni.
All the performers were impressive, each showcasing their own personal forte, but a few of the students really stood out. For example, the first of PSC’s students to perform was Robert St. Cyr who played organ, which was a nice contrast among the other piano pieces. His piece, and the first of the concert, was “Litanies” by Jehan Alain. He played dramatically and movingly; the sonorous sounds of the organ emanating throughout the hall almost seemed to make the air thicker. Another emotional performer of the day was Erica Picciano, who played “Twelve American Preludes, Op. 12” by Alberto Ginastera. Her first movement (or section of a piece of music) projected delicate, lamenting sentiments to the audience. Her second movement was furious and fast paced, which was an excellent distinction from her first; it played around with the musical equilibrium of the audience to switch styles so quickly. Another mentionable performer was Angela Olzsta, who played “Visions Fugitives, Op. 22” by Sergei Prokofiev. Her first movement sounded mystical; almost like a harp instead of piano. Her second movement was played flawlessly, and although I could hear what she felt, I couldn’t see the emotion on her face. I will say, however, that Angela has unforeseeable potential as a concert pianist. Nate Burcalow, a third year voice major, played an original composition. I was amazed that he even played in this concert since he is not a piano major, let alone the fact that he was the only one who played an originally composed piece. The piece was “Two Textures,” and it was quick and distinguished, and very interesting. I gained a new respect for Nate as a performer, and also as a musician during this concert.
The next performer, Jennifer Huang, is a local high school or possibly even middle school student. She played “Toccata” by Prokofiev. She was probably the youngest performer, but her performance was the most captivating of the concert. She was an absolute prodigy; her piece included many difficult aspects of playing the piano that I would not expect some college students to perform. For instance, the music called for her hands to constantly cross over each other. This is not usually done in piano music, as it is very difficult. She was amazing to watch because her hands did not stop moving at all. Furthermore, if a performer is always playing loud, soft, slow or in this case, excessively fast, it gets dull. But Jennifer’s performance was not, even for a moment, boring. Do not be surprised if you see Jennifer’s name headlining programs at Carnegie in the near future.
The last of PSC’s music major performers to take the stage was PSC’s Carl Wishneusky, and he played “Three Preludes” by Kent Kennan. He is one of my favorite pianists to watch because his passion for playing is always apparent on his face and through the movement of his body. His first movement was quick and full of discord and tension. It reminded me of a Greek or Roman chariot race. His next movement was soft and tranquil, and the contrast between the two was beautiful. In his third movement, he slowly moved back to the furious conflict achieved in the first movement.
Overall, this concert was persistently interesting and intriguing, which is nearly impossible when a concert specializes in one instrument. I was also impressed by the music selection. Even though this concert had a theme of twentieth century music, the contrast between all the pieces played was magnificent, and really added an unexpected, exciting dynamic to the performances. I tip my hat to Dr. Graff for all her efforts in giving a master class and collaborating the entire day; I was very impressed with this group of young musicians. The students that played today were inspiring. I came out of the concert and was driven to put my meager piano skills to work, and that is the sign of a true musician: to move and inspire.