Leif Ove Andsnes’s impeccible performance on the C. Bechstein D 282 concert grand piano was the absolute highlight of the Chopin Festival in Nohant-Vic, which takes place every summer at the idyllic Maison de George Sand.
The program consisted mainly of minor-key pieces: the first half with the Piano Sonata in A minor by Franz Schubert and six Marzukas (four of them in minor) by Frédéric Chopin; the second half with two fantasies - the C minor Fantasy by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and the Fantasy op. 116 by Johannes Brahms.
Andsnes' virtuosity was not evident in his speed, but rather in his disciplined, flawless regularity and clarity of the runs; The renowned pianist did not express the emotional nuances of the Marzukas through sentimental rubati, but rather through the variety of tone colours. Andsnes unfolded the great sound potential of the C. Bechstein D 282 concert grand piano with an extremely elegant touch.
After the passionate applauses, the pianist finished the magnificent concert with two brisk encores by Antonín Dvořák and Edvard Grieg. In these two short pieces, Leif Ove Andsnes demonstrated a somewhat free and impassioned interpretation, with flowing phrasing and more dynamic contrast.
Photo: © Lianyi Zhang
