Faculty Recital Proves Rich With Artistic Depth

Stephen Moore Aptly Handled a Program of Classical and Jazz

Stephen Moore's faculty recital Tuesday evening was an enjoyable recital both for the chosen repetoire, and the interpretation. An additional pleasing aspect was the fact that he played both classical and jazz music, which are not always performed in the same performance. The audience in Kulas Recital Hall was certainly very glad to be a part of the beautiful and, at times, lively evening.

Moore, Associate Professor of Aural Skills at the Conservatory, opened his recital with Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach's "Sonata in F Major, W. 62, No. 8." The sonata, composed in the early Classical period, also introduced the chronological program, which continued with two Romantic era pieces, and concluded with three jazz pieces from the 20th century. This seemed a suitable piece to open the recital, as the lighter mood and humor found in the piece captured the audience's attention right away. This was especially true of the first and third movements, with their many flowing passages and runs. Moore not only had a very crisp and clean technique during this sonata, but he also took careful steps to make each note in the melodic line "sing." The opening two movements seemed to employ prominently both contrapuntal motion and balanced phrases. The former, typical of the Baroque period, is characterized by multiple voices in different registers. The latter is found in much of the music of the early Classical period, when composers were attempting to create a sense of flow and order in their compostions.

Moore sucessfully brought outhese musical elements in his playing, especially when one voice was set against another. The program continued with Robert Schumann's "Fantasy, Op. 17." This piece offered a stark contrast from the C.P.E. Bach Sonata. Whereas the sonata had been full of systematic progressions, the "Fantasy" was much more spontaneous in nature. The semi-improvised quality of this piece was made even more noticeable by the piece's sense of longing, which heightened as the movements progressed. As a theme was developed, a sense of imminent return to the original theme seemed to take hold and help drive the melody line and rhythm, until the main theme did return. Moore exhibited passionate and expressive playing during this piece. During the more lyrical sections of the piece, particularly in the third movement, he carefully and sensitively produced a rich, warm tone color. These sections of the piece were where Moore could exhibit the most expression.

After a short intermission, Moore returned to the stage to perform Frederic Chopin's "Ballade in G minor, Op. 23." This piece is similar to the Schumann in that they both have difficult technical passages and fluctuation in moods. The Chopin seems to also have multiple examples of rubato, where the tempo of the melody can become slower, while the accompanying figures continue to be played at a constant rate. Moore played the rubato sections with a light touch and mood, which gave the piece a lighter feel overall. It seemed that Moore had some difficulty with some of the technical aspects of the piece, but his understanding of the subtleties in mood and rhythm made the performance enjoyable.

After the Chopin, the mood of the recital lightened a little when Moore was joined by Matthew Elliot on bass to play three lively jazz duets. One of these was a series of "Variations on a theme by Chopin." The theme chosen, and announced from the stage, was the second theme of the Chopin Ballade, that had just been performed. Improvising a classical theme doesn't always work sucessfully, but Moore and Mr. Elliot appeared to have chosen this theme well. They were able to transform a lyrical, Romantic theme into an uptempo swinging jazz tune.

Each of them soloed and created long, flowing lines of improvisation. These were also filled with layered chordal extensions, which stressed the tone color of the chords that were being played. With respect to these aspects, some of Moore's musical ideas were reminiscent of jazz pianists Marian McPartland and Dave Brubeck. The duo format worked well for all three pieces, in that the two could share and bounce ideas off each other. This was perhaps the most noticeable in "My Favorite Things," by Richard Rodgers.

Moore's recital was quite a lively performance with a varied repetoire. By not including only classical music, it gave a broader picture to a solo piano recital. His technique and expression were quite impressive and exciting to listen to. The audience certainly showed its appreciation and enthusiasm, of which Moore was definitely deserving.