Loh Wei Ken Violin Recital

24 April | WEDNESDAY Loh Wei Ken Violin Recital Kerim Vergazov, piano EDVARD GRIEG Sonata in C Minor for Piano and Violin Op. 45 I. Allegro molto ed appassionato II. Allegretto espressivo alla Romanza III. Allegro animato ALBERTO GINASTERA Pampeana no. 1, Rhapsody for Violin and Piano INTERMISSION (5 minutes) SERGEI PROKOFIEV Violin Sonata in D Major Op. 94bis I. Moderato II. Scherzo - Presto III. Andante IV. Allegro con brio About The Performer Loh Wei Ken began his violin lessons under Mr. Ma Ying Chun at Suzuki Music School when he was only 4 years old, and Mr Foo Say Ming from the age of 9 till 18. He is currently a student at the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music, under the tutelage of Mr Ng Yu-Ying. His teachers included Prof. Joseph Swensen and Mr. Christopher George while on exchange at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. In 2008, at 14 years old, Wei Ken made his first public debut with the SNYO on the Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto at the Esplanade Concert Hall and toured with the SNYO to Italy to perform the same concerto at the prestigious 10th Florence International Music Festival. During his musical journey, Wei Ken has had the opportunity to study with renowned violinists including Hagai Shaham, Mark Kaplan and Ilya Kaler of the Heifetz International Music Institute and participated in the 1st annual Singapore International Violin Festival. Programme Notes Edvard Grieg, Sonata in C Minor for Piano and Violin Op. 45 While writing the 3 violin sonatas, Grieg’s final violin sonata in C minor had the longest completion period in a few months compared to the first 2 that only took a matter of weeks. This sonata remains a major chamber composition of the Romantic Norwegian composer in the violin repertoire and is frequently performed by violinists all over the world. Opening with a dramatic heroic statement in C minor, the first movement is characterised by long sweeping sections which build in intensity. Vibrant, fast semiquavers in the piano part create a shimmering atmosphere of the harmonies and add to the drama under the soaring violin melody. Despite brighter moments like the Eb major second subject, Grieg maintains a sense of unease with syncopated rhythms, and the mood never stays settled for long. Huge extremes of dynamic are used as a device to justify extended sequential waves of increasing sound. Ultimately, the movement reaches its climax just before a Presto repeats some of the first material to bring the movement to a dramatic close. A huge shift in tonality to the contemplative key of E major and mood ushers in the opening of the second movement. Presented first in the piano and then the violin, a simple folk melody is beautifully harmonised with skilful use of suspensions. Then, the movement turns to the key of E minor with more agitated syncopated rhythms to offer contrast from the earlier sweetness of. After a series of modulations with the piano taking centre stage, a rising violin scale takes us briefly through the key of E-flat major before settling the opening melody back into its home key. This time, the music is allowed to flourish in dynamic while supported by a deep bass and insistent chords in the piano. After building to an interrupted climax in the violin part, the music winds down to an ethereal close, with the violin ascending up to a high, harmonic E. Grieg’s folk-music leanings are best displayed in the themes of the final movement. Fleeting, rippling 5ths in the piano open the folk-inspired theme which converses between the violin and piano. A contrasting cantabile section presents a sustained violin melody over simple chordal accompaniment in the piano. This pair of sections is then repeated with harmonic variations, before leading to a Prestissimo coda that brings the work to a virtuosic close. Alberto Ginastera, Pampeana No. 1, Rhapsody for Violin and Piano Written shortly after the composer's visit to the United States, Alberto Ginastera's Pampeana no. 1 (1947) for violin and piano returns to the folkloric elements that played such a prominent role in his earlier works. The piece opens with a free introductory passage, the piano providing a free-flowing accompaniment to the ethereal floating of the violin in its upper register. As the violin descends and ascends through the extremes of its range, melody and harmony become more insistent. A rhapsodic solo for the violin gives way to a lively section in which pizzicato and guitaristic effects in the violin are mimicked by the piano. The striking characteristic in this section is that syncopations adorned with brash dissonances and abrasive textures give rise to an energetic dance-like feel. Ginastera saturates the texture with a freneticism that slips freely between chromaticism, polytonality, and purely percussive tone clusters. One could go so far as to say this faster section of the piece might even sound beautifully violent due to its inherent energy and consistent usage of dissonances. A series of dramatic leaps and running passages concludes the work with an explosive ending. Sergei Prokofiev, Violin Sonata in D Major Op. 94bis Prokofiev's Violin Sonata No. 2 in D Major was actually based on the composer's Flute Sonata in D Op. 94 that was written in 1942. Prokofiev transformed the work into a violin sonata at the prompting of his close friend, the violinist David Oistrakh in 1943. The sonata has since been performed and recorded by many violinists worldwide. The first subject gives a sense of a languid, carefree wanderer getting lost in his/her own imagination, while the second subject is akin to a philosophical musing of the character questioning the existence of life. Do notice the sudden harmonic turns which infuse the music with a certain bipolar characteristic. The development kicks in with a variation of the first theme with militaristic (and perhaps schizophrenic) attitude, a complete opposite of what is heard earlier. The first and second subjects are repeated with more harmonic and melodic variation, but the music grows more dissonant and edgy, eventually building up to a climax with the violin insistently repeating arpeggios at its highest registers. The music then slowly descends back into a recapitulation of what we heard at the start with a different harmonic progression, before closing with a dreamy ending. The second movement is filled with great leaps, running passages and sarcastic dialogue between both instruments. Not a single moment is relaxed, and the music keeps pressing on until it hits a speed bump at the trio. Here, the trio is a plaintive and exotic slower section which evokes Russian folk music, which sometimes gets interrupted by jolts of harmonics that remind us of the fast section’s energy. The lively section makes a return once again, only to progress into a descending interlude on the piano with the violin interjecting short outbursts on the weak beats until material from the main theme is repeated insistently. The movement ends with both instruments tumbling down a broken descending scale akin to a malfunctioning roller coaster before going off with a pop. The third movement invites the listener into a dreamy soundscape. A soothing melody wanders harmonically between shades of dark and light but still carries a hint of schizophrenia that was present in the first movement. The music then transits into the hazy, languid second theme which consistently mimics a flowing river due to the endless stream of legato triplets. The first theme then makes a return, albeit much darker this time. It gradually dies down through a series of quiet, diminished harmonies before unexpectedly ending on the tonic key of F major. The final movement explodes with boldness like a cowboy riding on horseback. This infectious energy coupled with a strong bass gives the movement a very rustic feel that does not go away despite a brief, relaxed moment between the second theme and first theme. The music the descends into a quieter and more introspective section which becomes more energetic and insistent when it repeats for the second time. Once again, we hear the first theme at the start with slight technical variations on the violin when it abruptly cuts into a darker, minor key version of material from the second theme. This gets resolved with a return to the tonic key of D major and the music builds to an exciting, jubilant finale. .

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