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| Olivia Urbaniak at the Polish Embassy |
Presented by
The Friends of Chopin Australia Inc.
Embassy of
the Republic of Poland
Saturday 7th
June 2014
Reviewed by
Bill Stephens
As part of a
series of events leading up to the forthcoming 2nd Australian
International Chopin Piano Competition, to be held in Canberra from 15th
to 21st September this year, The Friends of Chopin Australia presented
this recital by 16 year-old pianist, Olivia Urbaniak, currently a Young
Steinway Artist and the recipient of a 2014 Rising Star Scholarship at the
Sydney Conservatorium of Music.
Prior to the
performance, The Friends of Chopin Australia President, Wanda Horkey introduced
the Polish Ambassador, Mr Pawel Milewski who welcomed guests before the
Artistic Director of the piano competition, Mr Maciej Pawela introduced Miss Urbaniak,
then joined her at the keyboard for a
spirited four-hands performance of Schubert’s “Polonaise in D Minor”.
Urbaniak then
set the mood for the first part of her
program, entitled “The Storytelling of Chopin” by reading some excerpts from a
series of fictional letters between Chopin and George Sand, which she had
written to deepen her own understanding of Chopin’s psyche. This proved an
excellent device for focussing the attention of the audience on the four Chopin
pieces she was about to play.
Composed, confident,
and playing without any reference to sheet music, Urbaniak commenced with Chopin’s
waltz-like “Mazuka in F# minor, Op 59, no. 3”. She followed this with, what is
considered to be among the most challenging pieces in the standard piano
repertoire, his showy “Ballade no 2 in F Major, op.38”, leaving no doubt as to
the brilliance of her technique with her impressive performance.
A sensitive interpretation of the familiar,
heavily romantic “Nocturne in D Flat major, op 27, no 2” proved a delightful contrast to the fireworks
of the ballade, following which she ended the first section of her program with
another dazzling interpretation, this time the dramatic “Scherzo no 3 in C#
minor, op 39”.
After a
short interval, Urbaniak again read excerpts from her fictional letters to set
the mood for a stunning performance of the fiendishly difficult “Sonata no. 2
in B flat minor, op.35”, popularly known as “The Funeral March” because of its
familiar third movement “Marche Funebre: Lento”. Her brilliant performance of
this sonata left her audience cheering for more, and they were rewarded with a
charming encore, Ravel’s “Ondine”.
Though too
young to compete in the forthcoming Chopin Piano Competition in Canberra,
Olivia Urbaniak will soon leave for a recital in Paris before further master
classes in Poland to prepare to compete in the International Chopin Piano
Competition in Warsaw in 2015. Those who experienced her brilliant Canberra
recital were left in no doubt that they had witnessed an extraordinary talent
and a brilliant young pianist on the threshold of major international
career.
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| Olivia Urbaniak |
This review published in the digital edition of CITY NEWS on 10th June 2014