As the lights dimmed, a hush of anticipation fell upon the packed Spaulding Auditorium. A short man dressed in a black Hungarian suit crossed the stage, walking towards a gleaming, black Steinway concert piano.
Silently, Piotr Anderszewski sat himself down on the black leather bench and begins to play. A coy smile spread across his face, as his fingertips playfully teased the ivory keys, emitting the delicate yet, lively sounds of Bach's "English Suites."
Of particular note was the third suite, "Courante." Slower paced and extremely beautiful, the piece conjured up images of fall leaves dancing gracefully in the wind. The audience found itself so enthralled in its performance, hanging on every note Anderszewski played.
The piece was equally captivating for Anderszewski, as he claimed that if he could only play one piece for the rest of his life, it would be Bach's "Well-Tempered Clavier, Book II," from which this was taken.
Following a brief intermission, Anderszweski returned to submerge himself into Chopin's "Three Mazurkas." He played with the eagerness of a child, accentuating the music with his unique facial expressions, mouthing each note as he played it. The piece by Chopin was strikingly forceful, with spurts of calm, reminiscent of a spring rain storm.
The most moving performance of the evening was of Szymanowski's "Metopes." In his lifetime the piece proved nearly too difficult for the composer himself to perform, yet Anderszewski did so flawlessly.
Strangely enough, last night on stage was the first time in several years that he had played the piece. Anderszewski noted after the show that "I was a little nervous." The performance was so spectacular that no one in the audience dared to move!
The mystic, suspenseful piece appeared to have quite an effect on the performer himself. "Metopes" is composed of three separate parts, all of which were played with great intensity. The pianist dramatically bent to the keys, swayed to the notes and appeared to be possessed by the music.
Between the each of the three parts, the pianist had to stop to catch his breath. Lifting his face from the keys, he revealed eyes that were shut tightly and an expression of sheer ecstasy. He even appeared to tear up when the music reached his ears.
The sheer power of the piece created a palpable tension in the auditorium.The pianist that he had to leave the stage for a moment to collect himself.
The final scheduled piece of the evening was another by Bach " "Partita No. 1 in B-flat Major." This piece brought a change in the mood; the pianist was literally dancing while sitting at the bench as he played; his facial expressions continued to animate the music. Indeed, Anderszewski proved why the performance of music is referred to as "playing." The elegant notes of Bach reached the audience as no other piece had, as they swayed to the music, closed their eyes in appreciation, and were generally spellbound by the performance.
Regrettably, the audience watched Anderszweski silently stand up from the bench, step away from the piano, and walk off the stage. Once they returned from the alternate world that the music had transported them to, they sighed in amazement and then erupted into applause.
After several minutes passed and the cheering only grew louder and the pianist returned to stage. He bowed twice curtly and revealed that same coy smile before exiting again.
Still, the cheers would not die down. Anderszewski had no choice but to come back to the stage, but only to give another round of bows. However, the audience was incessant in their demands! They wanted an encore!
Graciously, Anderszewski shared his gift one more time. He chose another piece by fellow Pole Chopin. To the audience's dismay, this was the final piece of the evening. The whole stage was lit up, but the real beacon was gone for the night. Piotr Anderszewski is a shining star.
Hanover resident Kitty Gibson, a pianist herself, remarked that the pieces were "very difficult" and joked that she "can't play like that." Another Hanoverian, Louise Thorndike said she "never heard Bach played so well."
Sarah Myers '07, with 12 years of piano playing experience, was also "very impressed" and she said she "really liked his interpretations."
Luckily, she found the words to express her feelings, because I believe that the rest of the audience was left speechless.
