IT MAY have been a sign from the heavens that something spectacular was about to happen when a pigeon flew unto the stage and jumped into the grand piano at The Ward Theatre on Sunday afternoon, before Jean-Michel Pilc's performance.
The pigeon could have easily stolen the show from less accomplished pianists, but as it was, he was just added entertainment. Sunday featured a combination of jazz and classical to provide a wonderful evening of music by two masterful pianists.
The concert was presented by the British High Commission, The Embassy of France, and the Ward Theatre Foundation in celebration of the centenary of the Etente Cordiale.
ENDING HOSTILITIES
The Etente Cordiale is the agreement signed to bring an end between years of hostilities between the French and British. It was signed in London on April 8, 1904. The evening, therefore, first featured British concert pianist Marguerite Wolff, and later French jazz pianist Jean-Michel Pilc.
A tiny woman ensconced in a glittering blue and pink gown, encrusted with sequins, Wolff performed a suite comprising Haydn, Schumann, Liszt and Chopin. A concert pianist since age 10, Wolff interspersed each selection with a brief anecdote about each composer, making her performance, not merely beautiful but also educational.
Her performance last Sunday was her fourth in Jamaica. Wolff began her performance with Haydn's intensely melodic Variation in F Minor. From there she moved to Schumann's Carnaval Opus 9. Wolf described the Schumann as "one of the glories in a pianist's repertoire." She explained that to her Carnavale was a phantom ballroom. To illustrate, she played the beginning of each of the 21 segments then explained how she interpreted it. As a result, when she launched into the full performance, it was easy to picture the auditorium peopled by characters from a carnavale.
When she played Liszt's Un Sospiro, a concert study, Wolff demonstrated that she had long mastered what ever difficulty the constant hand crossing should have presented. Her delicate hands flew across the piano, crossing back and forth with breathtaking ease, seemingly guided by a higher force.
Though she should have ended with Chopin's Ballade in G Minor, the applause was so enthusiastic that she returned to deliver one of Chopin's waltzes.
Pilc largely discarded the information on the programme, playing as the mood struck him. He seemed to quite enjoy the seemingly attentive pigeon's presence. Occasionally, he would play some chords, then look at the bird sitting a few feet away as though gauging its reaction.
A self-taught pianist, Pilc showed an amazing ability for reinterpretation as well as great ability in his own composition. His rendition of My Favourite Things was a richly melodic version. With eyes closed and both feet tapping, though only one of the pedal, he wove images far more impressive than raindrops on roses. His was a shower of melody. The brown paper package was clearly discarded and more elaborate wrapping with satin bows put in its stead.
OTHER WORKS
Pilc also performed works by Thelonius Monk, including Green Chimneys and Mysteriouso. Harry Belafonte's Banana Boat also made it to his repertoire. From his own work, Pilc performed selections from Cardinal Points, the last album produced by his trio, and Follow Me his first solo album. This selection included Fred's Waltz a piece dedicated to Chopin.
According to Pilc, with their penchant for improvisation, classical pianists were the jazz men of the last century, while today's jazz greats are the classical musicians of the 21st century.
After hearing himself and Wolff perform, no one was likely to argue.
