On several occasions when I listened to Brahms’s first piano concerto in concert, I was left wondering whether Brahms really intended the pianist to play with so much physical force to compete with the orchestra. Too often, the soloist seems to struggle against a symphonically conceived orchestral sound. Certainly, especially in the first movement, there are passages where the piano needs to be musically forceful when confronting the orchestra. But more often in this work, the role of the piano is integrated in the orchestral texture, and it should be ensured that the piano solos are not overpowered by the orchestral sound.
Happily, there were no such balance problems in Krystian Zimerman’s performance of the concerto with Mariss Jansons and the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra (BRSO) at Muza Kawasaki Symphony Hall. Currently on their Far East Tour, Jansons and the orchestra launched the Japanese leg of the tour in Kawasaki, with further performances in Kyoto, Tokyo and Hyogo. Zimerman’s concerto appearance has been the highlight of the tour programme, as he rarely performs concertos these days, and only with a handful of conductors he trusts.
Zimerman gave an impeccable performance – beautifully controlled and every detail thought-through (as his performances always are) yet responding with warmth and spontaneity to the orchestra, especially to the solo winds. He seemed always conscious of the piano’s role within the work – his solos would appear from within, rather than against the orchestra and the piano bass part was always at one with the orchestral bass line. In fact, whenever he wasn’t playing, he would turn towards the orchestra and live through every phrase with the players. But it was Jansons’ sensitive control of the orchestral dynamics and the transparency of texture that enabled Zimerman the widest possible expressive range, from the softest touch in the tender second subject of the first movement to the turbulent aggression in the development section. One noticed how Jansons would bring down the orchestra an extra level before a quiet piano entry. It was the most ideally balanced and blended performance of the work I have experienced live.
Furthermore, the clarity of form and architecture Zimerman and Jansons displayed, especially in the large-scale first movement, was impressive. The second movement was taken at a slow pace and Zimerman’s phrasing initially felt a little deliberate, but his gradual build-up to the climatic Orgelpunkt section was magnificent. In the rondo third movement, taken quite briskly, there were a few ensemble slips, but that aside, it was a masterful performance led by two musicians who understand Brahms’ musical language deeply. One could perhaps say that this was a performance that viewed the work through the prism of his later works (for instance, one was reminded of Brahms’s late piano works in the second movement) rather than as the first symphonic endeavour of an ambitious youth in his mid-twenties. But frankly, that took nothing away from this deeply thoughtful and moving performance.