Концерт пианиста Эммы Липпа и сопрано Рады Точальной в Обществе любителей музыки.
This is the 65th year since the foundation of the Music Lovers’ Society supporting talented young musicians and regularly organizing classical music performances in Melbourne. Their recent concert was held at St John’s Church in Malvern East and presented the wonderful duet of two extremely professional performers: Emma Lippa – the pianist, and Rada Tochalna – soprano. The programme was dedicated to the romances by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky – a Russian composer of the 19th century, whose works are among the most popular music in the classical repertoire.
Emma started her piano performance with the excerpts from Album for the Young comprised of 24 simple, less than a minute long pieces, ideal for a beginning player. This album includes compositions close to children’s hearts, like Playing Hobby-Horses, Mama, March of the Wooden Soldiers, and The New Doll. It also has some genuinely Russian elements like Mazurka, Russian Song, The Accordion Player and Kamarinskaya. There are frivolously romantic Old French Song, rhythmic German Song, and famous Neapolitan Song. The album was created as a dedication to Tchaikovsky's favourite nephew, Volodya Davydov. Nowadays young pianists start their acquaintance with classical music through these innocent melodies.
The atmospheric sound of the church was a perfect match for the magnificent soprano of Rada Tochalna. The singer performed with great passion, selflessly immersing into the tunes of piano. Through the beautiful songs of Russian poets Tolstoy, Sollogub and Apukhtin the audience experienced a plentiful of intense emotions: the excitement of It Was in Early Spring, mystery of Tell Me what in the Shade of the Branches?, passion of Frenzied Nights, and heartbreak of If Only I had Known.
After a short interval we were treated to a few more songs and excerpts from the ballet music. Having spent 28 years with Bolshoi Ballet and 20 years with Australian Ballet, Emma said she could play any part of classical ballets by heart if waken up in the middle of the night.
The culmination of the concert was Tatiana’s Letter Scene ¬– the excerpt from the opera ‘Eugene Onegin’, beloved by Russians for its romantic devotion and emotional drama. Not only sang immaculately, but also acted out with a real talent, the song was met with a blissful delight of the audience.
The whole concert was held in the relaxed ambience of a friendly, family-like gathering. There were snacks and refreshments served in the interval and after the concert, that too added up to the welcoming atmosphere of the evening. It was a grand pleasure to indulge in these beautiful sounds of the brilliant voice and the tender piano accompaniment.
article: Irina Ivanova https://www.facebook.com/ivanova.com.au
photos: Ina Parakhina at Photoverita Photo Studio https://www.facebook.com/photoverita
original press release source: Bohemian Rhapsody Club and Online Magazine http://bohemianrhapsodyclub.weebly.com/travelling.html
