United Kingdom Debussy: Jean-Yves Thibaudet (piano). Barbican Corridor, London, 24.1.2024. (JC)
Debussy – Prèludes, Books I & II
Jean-Yves Thibaudet captivated his viewers in a packed Barbican Corridor with a blinding efficiency of Debussy’s full Preludes.
Below Thibaudet’s beautifully nimble fingers, whose mild contact was capable of miraculously carry the softest sounds to the again of the nice corridor, Debussy’s miniatures carried out consecutively as a set seemed like a sequence of fleeting impressions. I take advantage of the time period ‘impressions’ with none unfavourable connotations, as a result of it’s with a really exact contact and distinctive fashionable aptitude that Thibaudet was capable of conjure earlier than us the essence in every of the Preludes, which vanished simply as shortly because it got here into being. Thibaudet’s Debussy Preludes have been dramatic and thrilling, and all of the impressions created by every Prelude linked collectively appeared to inform one story. Oftentimes, Debussy’s Preludes are programmed as separate items, and I usually hear performers attempting to deal with every Prelude as an entire piece in itself, embalming its efficiency with a reverence for Debussy’s meticulous craftsmanship and being very cautious to create the proper soundworld through which the melodies could bask; not Thibaudet. As an alternative of being cautious in treating the Preludes as good little works, he sought extremes in his interpretation, rising to grand proportions within the stormy ‘Ce qu’a vu le vent d’ouest’ within the First Guide, in addition to making a reverberating resonance within the notorious ‘La cathedral engloutie’.
I had a way of seeing a picturesque village through which many issues have been occurring concurrently in Thibaudet’s efficiency of ‘Minstrels’, so robust was Thibaudet’s storytelling means and his intuition in recreating the visible scene that first impressed Debussy. For Thibaudet, the essence of the Préludes lie not of their perfection, however of their means to convey extramusical scenes, be within the odor and scent of ‘Les sons et les parfums tournent dans l’air du soir’, the tempestuousness of ‘Les collines d’Anacapri’ or the brilliance of ‘Feux d’artifice’. Subsequently, he was by no means hindered by a way of decorum to share his creativeness and creativity, which appeared to be bursting on the seams, however finally demonstrating to the viewers simply how inventive and imaginative Debussy was. This was very recent to me, allowed me to see Debussy’s music in a unique mild, and renewed my curiosity in even the preferred tunes from the units.
What was by no means misplaced on us by means of Thibaudet’s efficiency was Debussy’s sense of humour. With out an excessive amount of of the reverence for Debussy’s perfectionist facet, the humorous components within the music got here by means of unabated, nearly making us snicker. This facet of the efficiency made it really feel nearly like watching a play — an inventive style through which interplay with the viewers performs a giant half, and humour is commonly a strategy to proceed to gauge their curiosity — as soon as once more reminding me of how Debussy is conscious of all these extramusical issues in his personal musical compositions.
Thibaudet’s efficiency was extremely electrifying and entertaining, and actually made you take heed to Debussy’s music otherwise. A novel expertise price watching stay.
Jeremy Chan
