K-Pop Idol or Classical Recitalist? Either Way, Ji-Yong is a Pleasure to Hear

The new way to publicize a classical pianist.  Korean-American pianist Ji-Yong.

Thailand Cultural Center. Bangkok. October 20, 2012. Korean-American pianist Ji-Yong arrived for his Bangkok recital, proceeded by publicity usually reserved for a rock star, and that was no accident. Posters of his handsome face papered downtown Bangkok, together with newspaper articles about his afterhours likes and dislikes. His career was characterized in super-superlative terms such as "The new piano phenomenon," "great," and "renowned." Consistent with the boy band image, Ji-Yong, 21-years of age, strode onto the stage dressed in a black shirt, shirt tails hanging loose, unbuttoned at the top with a measured amount of bare chest showing, tight black pants, and casual shoes over bright orange socks. In fact, Ji-Yong is not terribly well-known, and is not a great pianist. He is, however, a very good young pianist, very talented and musical, as well as being a serious musician.

The first work on Ji-Yong's very traditional recital program, Bach's Partita No. 1, straight away let us know what to expect from the rest of the program: extraordinary technique and absurdly fast tempi, but very musical conceptions and an overall conception of the music he selected to play. Because his technique is flawless, Bach came off rather well, if breathless. Unfortunately, Beethoven's Waldstein sonata did not fare so well. This great work requires a certain amount of poise and stateliness. While playing it as quickly as Ji-Yong played it might provide some excitement and frisson, his speed inevitably produced some accents and distortions which are solely of his own creation. Still, in the hands of a less capable artist, Ji-Yong's Waldstein might have come across as jagged, which it did not. 

Having dispensed with Beethoven and Bach in record time, Ji-Yong gave an uneven, but sometimes beautiful, rendition of Schmann's Scenes from Childhood. The softer and slower movements were sensitively and beautifully played, without being saccharine, while, as in the Beethoven, the fast movements were frequently rushed along and given distortion-producing accents which are an inevitable result of lack of phrasing; after all, you do have to pause for at least a nano second to construct a musical phrase. Ji-Yong's Scenes from Childhood were exuberant all of the time, and beautiful some of the time.

After the intermission, Chopin ruled the rest of the evening. Ji-Yong selected well-know and often played staples such as the Polonaise in A Flat Major and the G Minor Ballade, but he coupled these with several nocturnes and a prelude. It was in Chopin that Ji-Yong showed just how very musical he is. His tempi were appropriate and his tone was gorgeous. Just the right amount of rubato and some introspection combined with careful planning, resulted in a Chopin performance that satisfied.

After the last notes of the A Flat Polonaise, Ji-Yong's female fans felt free to scream their approval, but they were joined by even the more sedate members of the audience, who, like me, appreciated Ji-Yong's playing. If the opportunity arises, I would be first in line to hear this young and promising piano artist play again.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

From Massage Parlor King to Corruption Buster

Colorful Thai politician, Chuvit Kamolvisit, makes his point at the FCCT on October 16, 2012.

Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand. Bangkok. October 16, 2012. When I first came to Thailand many years ago, Chuvit Kamolvisit was an acknowledged massage parlor tycoon, but he decided to rid himself of the brothel business and to become a politician. Currently, he's a member of parliament from a small fringe party and his efforts have now turned to exposing official corruption, which was the subject of his October 16 talk at the FCCT.

Thailand is one of the most corrupt countries in the world, and the reaches of official corruption extend to every level of Thai society. The Thai police, with their hands ever out, head anyone's list of corrupt organizations. Kh. Chuvit pointed out that a policeman's basic salary is 8,000 baht a month (US$250) and, according to Chuvit, it takes 500,000 baht (US$15,650) to become a policeman, which includes bribes needed to pass the qualification examination, a subject which has been highlighted and exposed in the press recently. Thus, bribe-taking is an economic necessity for the police force. But, would raising salaries alleviate some of the corruption?

No, according to Chuvit, because corruption is an integral part of Thai society. In support of this view, with which I agree, polls show that Thais accept a certain amount of corruption as a part of daily life, a cost of living or a cost of doing business. Official corruption is not a burning issue in Thai politics, although politicians and political parties give routine lip service to ending corruption. In order to stamp out corruption there needs to be a change in culture, which takes a long time to achieve, but can be done. At the present time, Kh. Chuvit and most people I talk with, believe that the situation is hopeless. The best advice Kh. Chuvit can give, is that when an expat is faced with a police or official demand, just pay up and try to keep the "fine" as low as possible. Sounds like good advice to me.

Thai Version of Miss Saigon Comes to Bangkok

Muangthai Rachadalai Theatre. Bangkok, Thailand. October 10, 2012. I saw the original London production of Miss Saigon in the 1990s (it opened in 1989), and loved it. The two-disc CD by the London cast is one of the CDs I most frequently listen to. I was skeptical of how a Thai version would fare, but I need not have worried: it was terrific. Yes, hearing the familiar lyrics in Thai was a little strange at first, but there were English subtitles, and Miss Saigon is an opera, and I'm used to attending operas where I understand not one word of what is being said or sung on stage. Miss Saigon has been performed by 27 companies in 25 countries and 246 cities, and it has been translated into 12 different languages, so we know that it travels well. Everyone involved in this production was Thai, and it is a tribute to the arts in this country that so difficult a production could be so magnificently staged. The scenery and staging, including the famous helicopter landing in the second act, were as professional as was the original. The voices and acting, although not great, were good enough to be very effective. The dancing was a little routine, but appropriate to the times, and the orchestra was expert. This Miss Saigon was the best theatre experience I've had since coming to Thailand.

A Piano Recital by Ancuza Aproudu

Goethe Institut Auditorium. Bangkok, Thailand. October 13, 2012. Romanian pianist Ancuza Aproudu demonstrated once again that you don't have to be a great performing artist to provide an audience with an evening of nicely played, very enjoyable music. In this regard, the choice of a program is important to keep things moving and interesting, and Ms. Aproudu gave us Debussy, Messiaen, Mendelssohn and Brahms in an uninterrupted 75-minute performance. She was most successful in her playing of eight of Debussy's most familiar preludes. Her interpretive skills, nice touch, and introspective dynamics served the music well. The Messiaen, a short movement (Regard des Anges) from Vingt regards sur l'enfant-Jésus, which I heard in its entirety played by Peter Serkin once, is easier to take in short installments than is the complete work. As for the Mendelssohn and Brahms, especially the fiendishly difficult Variations on a Theme by Handel, quite frankly,is better left to pianists with stronger techniques. Still, the music flowed well, and after several mishaps in the Brahms Variations, Ms. Aproudu seemed relieved when the performance ended. Nonetheless, this might have been a case where the audience enjoyed the performance more than the performer did.

Channelling the Deluge--An Evening with Dr. Anond Snidvongs

Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand. Bangkok, Thailand. October 9, 2012. After last year's devastating floods, residents of Bangkok are understandably nervous about this year's rainy season, which is about to end. The anxiety has been compounded by the media, which gives out contradictory and inaccurate stories buttressed by a lot of hype. A true expert, Dr. Anond Snidvongs, Executive Director of the Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency, and Director of the scientific think tank SEA-START, carrying lots of satellite images, graphs and charts to the FCCT, gave a thorough presentation of Thailand's current water situation. Although it is difficult to sum up all the data presented by Dr. Anond, it is fair to say that this year's overall rainfall and water levels are substantially below last year's, and that flooding this year mostly will be within natural catchment areas, but, of course, there will be some local areas under water. As for Bangkok, September was the wettest in history, which caused backup in the drainage system, which mainly dissipated within a few hours. Unless you're one of the unlucky few to be an "exception," extensive flooding and dislocations will not be experienced. One fact tells the story: rainfall this year is 30% less than last year, but flooding is down 75%.

Two Chilean Ladies Make Music in Bangkok

(Above Photos:  Pianist Mahani Teave (below) and flutist Viviana Guzman (above))

Siam Ratchada Music Auditorium. Bangkok, Thailand. October 7, 2012. Two very pretty ladies from Chile, flutist Viviana Guzman and pianist Mahani Teave, presented a evening of flute and piano music to a packed audience. Both accomplished musicians played a varied program of short works from Bach to Piazzolla. Flautist Guzman brought with her some different flutes, including a Native American flute from my home state of Arizona, and demonstrated the variety of sounds that different flute instruments can produce. In the first two rows alone five people were taking photos throughout the recital, including the use of two iPads, which took this music event into the circus arena. If the musicians were serious, the audience was not.

17-Year Old Thai Pianist With a Flair

Goethe Institut Auditorium. Bangkok, Thailand. September 29, 2012. Some people are just born with a flair for playing the piano. While it still takes lots of hard work and expert teaching, those who are so gifted can do amazing things at a young age. 17-year old Thai high school student Thanisa Durongkaveroj, whizzed non-stop through an hour long program of difficult Bach, Beethoven, Chopin and Bartok, with hardly time to catch her breath. Her fluent playing, which produced a very pleasant sound, was a delight to hear. Of course, she has a ways to go toward interpretive subtlety and a bigger sound, but her performance showed that she is equal to the task ahead. Thanisa has applied to several colleges in the US, where she will pursue a joint degree in piano and some other major. It will be time (and money) well spent. I wish her well.

Otelo Burning

 
Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand. Bangkok. September 27, 2012. I find many of the films that are shown as part of the FCCT's on-going Contemporary Film Series, boring and poorly conceived, but once in a while, a memorable and moving picture is shown, and the South African film Otelo Burning, is just such a picture. Otelo Burning is a 'growing-up' tale of a group of youngsters who are lifted out of the drudgery of their racist-ridden lives -- and the dangers of political factionalism -- by the exhilarating joys of surfing. It takes place in a slum near the beach city of Durban. The cast is mostly made up of amateurs, and the film seems to have been shot with a hand-held camera on location, which gave the production an air of authenticity. While providing some hope and uplift, in essence, Otelo Burning depicts a human tragedy, one that is all the more moving because it is so real. To date, the film has been shown and applauded at many film festivals, but it is now set for release in theatres, and if it comes to a location near you, it is worth seeing. This evening's screening at the FCCT was introduced by South Africa's ambassador to Thailand, who gave an eloquent and simple statement of the events surrounding the time when Mandela was released from prison, which coincides with the action of the film.

TPO Ends the Season with a Bang

MACM Hall. Mahidol University. Nakhonpathom, Thailand. September 22, 2012. For its final concert of the 2011-2012 season, chief conductor Gudni Emilsson turned to two major works, Beethoven's 5^th piano concerto, with German pianist Rolf-Dieter Arens as soloist, and Shostakovich's 12^th symphony. It's been a wonderful and exciting season, and the orchestra, which starts its next season on November 9, deserves a little time off, although its loyal audience will miss them.

I've heard and liked Rolf-Dieter Arens in two piano recitals he's performed in Bangkok. He's a solid pianist of the "old school," which distains showmanship and concentrates on tone and authenticity. Beethoven forms part of his core classical repertoire, and his technique should have been strong enough for him to give a beautiful and fluid reading of this difficult work, but, alas, it didn't seem up to the task. He excelled in proportionality, by which I mean that the loud passages were proportionate to the soft passages, and the fast parts of the work were proportionate to the slow parts, and his tone, especially in the second movement, was beautiful. But he was hesitant and insecure in many of the demanding sections, and the fact that he hit more than a usual number of wrong notes, or missed notes here and there, didn't help. In all, a disappointing, weak performance. 

Shostakovich's 12^th symphony is mired in political controversy, which is no surprise inasmuch as Shostakovich dedicated the symphony to Lenin, named the symphony "The Year of 1917," and gave titles (e.g., "The Dawn of Humanity")to each of the four movements, relating to Lenin and the 1917 Russian revolution. When Shostakovich wrote his 12^th symphony in 1961, he had joined the Communist Party just the year before. Given these circumstances, it was quite natural that critics in the West branded the 12^th symphony as communist propaganda. However, over the years, various musicologists have analyzed the symphony and Shostakovich's life, which was made miserable by the Communist authorities, and have found evidence of anti-Soviet themes within the work. Recent critics and audiences have been more receptive to the symphony. My view is that music is pure sound and emotion, and even where the composer himself provides a "program" for the work, it is the music itself, and not the supposed story of the music, which is determinative. Under the expert direction of Gudni Emilsson, and splendid solo playing by many of the TPO's first chairs, as well as by the large ensemble required for this gigantic work, the TPO delivered a blockbuster of a musical performance. Shostakovich's 12^th symphony maybe be crass, but it is exciting and exacting. The closing five minutes or so are as about as energetic as music gets, and it is a compliment to this fine orchestra and fine conductor to say that it ended this 7^th season of its existence with a bang.