Recital
Marco Clavora Braulin
Casino Maltese
The Casino Maltese was the venue of a celebration marking Slovakia’s National Day.
The evening was introduced by Godwin Bencini, Consul for Slovakia in Malta who greeted the distinguished gathering led by President of Malta George Abela and the Ambassador of Slovakia, resident in Rome, Maria Krasnohorska.
As usual on such occasions, talented musicians from Slovakia are invited to perform and this time it was the turn of pianist Marco Clavora Braulin.
Not quite 18, which he will be later this month, this young man is a true figlio d’arte as both his Italian father and Slovak mother are organists.
He already has a certain assertive and composed air about him and provided a series of highly enjoyable interpretations of some familiar and (to us) not so familiar music.
The performance began with a choice of three sonatas by Scarlatti, the first being in D minor, L. 366 followed by a sunnier one, in G Major, L. 286.
It was back to the D minor key again in the third sonata subtitled toccata, L.422. What I really liked very much was Chopin’s Andante spianato et Grand polonaise brillante, Opus 22.
This was no run-of-the-mill interpretation, one very intelligently performed and coloured by certain very telling effects.
The andante spianato section of this work was punctuated by at times slightly longer pauses than usual but ones which built up a certain momentum raising increasingly higher expectations of musical resolution.
When launching into the polonaise the pianist adopted the same approach which I found to be even more effective.
A touch of Slovakia was provided by the next two pieces. The first of them was the very bright and energetic Toccata by Ivan Hrušovský throughout the mostly furious pace of which the pianist maintained total clarity.
Ján Cikker’s Potok a búrka (The stream and the storm) which is No. 3 from Tatranské potoky (Tatra Streams), is a very evocative piece of programme music in which both the swirling waters of the stream and the turbulence of the storm were very well-projected.
Easily turning to a different idiom Mr Clavora Braulin launched into Bartók’s Six Rumanian Dances which were full of textural and rhythmic variety and contrasts.
He concluded the recital with Prokofiev’s Sonata No. 3 in A minor, Opus 28.
Rapid, compact and lively this performance was marked by an admirable precocity.
The furious almost savage attack in the first section and its stormy development merged with ease into the briefer if more meditative central section when it moved on to reach an excitingly joyful conclusion.
An encore was conceded, J.S. Bach’s Prelude and fugue in D minor BWV 875 from Bk. II of the Well-Tempered Clavier.