NEWS
GREAT SUCCESS WITH STANFORD AT THE BBC PROMS
18th August 2008
Finghin's performance of Stanford's Second Piano Concerto No. 2 at the BBC Proms last week has been greeted with numerous excellent reviews in the UK newspapers. The work itself was also very well received.
From The Times:
"Stanford's work is a far cry from his Songs of the Sea and his renowned Anglican canticles. In fact, for the first ten minutes at least, the innocent ear might well think it was listening to Rachmaninov. And no wonder: Stanford had conducted the Russian composer's Piano Concerto No 2 in 1910, with Rachmaninov himself as soloist. Fired by its brooding lyricism, he had set to work immediately on a concerto of his own.
The young Dublin-born pianist Finghin Collins gave a performance of his compatriot's concerto that released the intense white heat of its inspiration. In the first, almost ludicrously Rachmaninovian, movement, Collins's crystalline accompanying figures and octaves had just the measure of Stanford's recreative homage: both panache and poetry sang out. The harp of Erin seemed to be sounding in the slow movement, and the finale was boisterous with a distinctively Irish brogue. Could this be the start of an overdue rehabilitation of this fascinatingly bilingual work?"
The Guardian:
"Stanford's Second Piano Concerto was a more substantial proposition altogether. It was composed in 1911, apparently after Stanford had been swept away by Rachmaninov's Second Concerto, though the occasional Russian touches in the piano writing and moments of lyrical introspection are outweighed by the influences of Brahms and Schumann in more of the concerto. It is garrulous (perhaps 10 minutes too long), and lacks memorable ideas, but Finghin Collins' beautifully structured, transparent piano playing was the real delight of the performance."
The Daily Telegraph:
"Charles Villiers Stanford taught RVW, also at the RCM, but the younger composer cultivated a more obviously British style than his teacher: Stanford's Second Piano Concerto was written in 1911 under the spell of Rachmaninov. It was a brave work for the young Irish pianist Finghin Collins to choose for his Proms début, especially since it's a concerto that, until its finale, is more about underplaying than showing off.
It may simply have been the Albert Hall up to its usual acoustical tricks, but much of his playing failed to carry above the admittedly small orchestra; it could also have been Montgomery's uneven balancing of his charges - I hesitate to cast judgement. What wasn’t in doubt, though, was Collins’s lovely singing tone and his lyricism in the rivulets of melody and broken chords of the slow movement."
The Evening Standard:
"Stanford's Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor could easily be mistaken for an apocrophal Fifth of Rachmaninov's. (It even shares its tonality with the Russian's No. 2.) He may not have quite the consistently dark colouring and melancholic undertow of Rachmaninov but his melodies have a comparable epic-heroic sweep, and a tendency to unfold their long-breathed phrases over rippling arpeggiated accompaniments. Finghin Collins dispatched the prolific figuration with effortless control, while orchestral blends were impressively realised."
The Sunday Telegraph:
"To most music-lovers, the words ‘Piano Concerto No.2 in C minor’ mean only one thing: Rachmaninov’s popular masterpiece. But at the Ulster Orchestra’s welcome Prom, they signified the rare dusting off of a work by Stanford.
Rachmaninov’s concerto (1901) was clearly the model for Stanford’s (1911) – right from the start, with its rippling arpeggios and broad tune in the orchestra. Yet Stanford’s model is an earlier one, and the calm harmonies of the slow movement and directness of the rollicking finale suggest Anton Rubinstein.
Though the 40-minute concerto is a little long-winded, it came across well thanks to the passionate advocacy of the young Irish pianist Finghin Collins. Kenneth Montgomery, the Ulster Orchestra’s principal conductor, matched him with warm, stylish accompaniments."
Classical Source:
"Finghin Collins, bright of tone and secure of technique, was careful not to ‘display’ the opening arpeggios, the piano accompanying the orchestra, and where the two forces melodically or rhythmically combined, he was extremely sensitive in applying respectful dynamics.
Where his interpretation came into its own was in the slow movement, with Kenneth Montgomery, making his first Proms appearance for 31 years, making it a graceful aria. The spread piano chords of the theme were nicely voiced by Collins, and at times the delicate textures resembled a Fauré impromptu rather than the slow movement of a Romantic piano concerto. This was redressed in the punchy finale, with keen definition to Stanford’s easily memorable theme and an emphatic, well-received conclusion."
Classical Source also gave a special mention to Finghin Collins for his "spectacular Stanford" in a Proms round-up. Click here for more.
