Katia and Marielle Labèque at Davies Symphony Hall, April 7, 2014

SFSymphony presents Katia and Marielle Labèque
2014-04-07
Davies Symphony Hall
201 Van Ness, San Francisco, CA
8:00 PM, Monday, April 7, 2014

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[8:00 PM lights down, announcements]

George Gershwin (1898-1937): Three Preludes for Two Pianos, arranged for two pianos by Irwin Kostal (1911-1994)

1. [8:02 PM] Allegro ben ritmato e deciso
2. [8:03 PM] Andante con moto e poco rubato
3. [8:08 PM] Agitato
   [work ends 8:09 PM]

[8:09 PM; musicians return]

Philip Glass (b.1937): Four Movements for Two Pianos

1. [8:10 PM] I
2. [8:16 PM] II
3. [8:21 PM] III
4. [8:28 PM] IV
   [set ends 8:35 PM]

[8:54 PM lights down, musicians enter]

Leonard Bernstein (1918-1990): Music from West Side Story for Two Pianos and Percussion, arranged by Irwin Kostal (1911-1994)

[8:54 PM; waiting]
[8:55 PM; musicians return; tuning]

1. [8:55 PM] Prologue
2. [8:59 PM] Jet Song
3. [9:01 PM] Something's Coming
4. [9:04 PM] Rock Blues
5. [9:05 PM] Mambo
6. [9:08 PM] Cha Cha
7. [9:09 PM] Maria
8. [9:13 PM] America
9. [9:16 PM] ? (unlisted bit)
10. [9:20 PM] I Feel Pretty
11. [9:22 PM] One Hand, One Heart
12. [9:23 PM] Tonight
13. [9:24 PM] Somewhere
14. [9:26 PM] Cool
15. [9:29 PM] A Boy Like That
16. [9:31 PM] I Have a Love
17. [9:34 PM] The Rumble
18. [9:36 PM] ? (unlisted bit)
19. [9:38 PM] Finale
    [9:39 PM; set ends]
    
    Encore
20. [9:41 PM] America (reprise)
    [9:43 PM; show ends; applause]
    [9:45 PM; ovations end]

• Gonzalo Grau: percussion;
• Katia Labèque: piano;
• Marielle Labèque: piano;
• Raphaël Séquinier: percussion;
  - with special guest (encore only) -
• ?: flamenco dance.

I was surprised at how brief the first set was, particularly the opening work from Gershwin, which was well done, but not long enough to stand up as more than an appetizer of sorts for tonight's musical meal. The Glass piece that followed was quite good – even mom said she liked it, which is really saying something given her preference for the standard repertoire. I would have been happy to hear another short piece from the recent album, Minimalist Dream House – seems a little odd that they didn't think we'd want to hear more.

The second set, performed with percussive and SFX accompaniment was a hoot, though I'm not entirely convinced that the program listing matched the reduction as performed – there were at least two times where it sounded to me like an extra segment had been inserted into the work. I'm also unconvinced over the merit of reducing a classic musical for a small-group performance. Heck, I was disappointed that last summer's orchestral iteration of West Side Story lacked dancers.

The best I can say is that I really enjoyed the trading of lines between the two pianos, and it reminded me how rare it is to hear such duo recitals. I dunno if I'll sign up to see the LaBeque sisters again on their next visit – probably depends on the repertoire offered – but I'll definitely be looking for more piano duet shows!

Stephen Smoliar posted a luke-warm review for the Examiner.

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