Zarathoustra

I’m not the biggest fan of Richard Strauss, whose later years were murky to say the least, but i have to admit that Till Eulenspiegel’s Merry Pranks and Also sprach Zarathustra are two of the most awe-inspiring pieces of music ever committed to staff paper. The former reminded me why i don’t listen to that much orchestral music at home — it can’t be properly reproduced without missing the quietest phrases… or blowing up your speakers. The latter is more than the cliché it’s become since Kubrick and Deodato — played on the magnificent 82-stop and 6,500-pipe organ housed in Lyon’s auditorium, the introductory double low C is properly gut-churning.

The inclusion of Beethoven’s third piano concerto in between the two was a bit of a surprise. Leif Ove Andsnes had to cancel his performance due to illness, so Javier Perianes replaced him at the last minute. I’ll never fault a sub, but even if i wanted to, i couldn’t. Perianes is the perfect blend of sweetness and rawness. He spent the first two minutes of the concerto facing the orchestra, like a kid watching candy being made, and displayed incredible expressivity when he finally turned to the piano. Half an hour later, he sprang back to play Manuel de Falla’s Ritual Fire Dance as an encore, with such speed and force that, for a moment, i forgot the auditorium’s perennial sonic limitations.

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