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Thibaudet to Die For By Philip Anson / February 7, 2001 Carnegie Hall Feb. 7, 2001 French pianist Jean Yves Thibaudet made a triumphant Carnegie Hall solo debut on Feb. 7 with an all-French program that will be remembered as one of the highlights of the concert year. Thibaudet has played many concertos at Carnegie Hall, most recently a rather lacklustre Ravel Concerto for the Left Hand with the Montreal Symphony Orchestra (Oct. 21, 2000), but his solo debut at 39 years of age has been long-overdue. Thibaudet already has very high visibility in the classical music world. He is an exclusive Decca artist with some 20 CDs to his credit, one if which was Grammy nominated. His recent recordings of Debussy, Ravel, and Rachmaninov have elbowed older versions off the shelf. He accompanies Cecilia Bartoli and Renée Fleming in recital. On a personal level, he’s a workaholic, constantly travelling, performing, and giving interviews. Still, nothing prepared us for the artistic mastery, flair, and fluency of Wednesday’s concert. The first half of his program was devoted to Debussy's Preludes, Book II (1912-13). The opening Brouillards and Feuilles Mortes were clear, crisp, and deliberate, as if Thibaudet was getting a feel for the piano and audience. In the Puerta del vino he stretched his wings with a few unexpectedly sudden attacks. Still, he played with Apollonian calm and a touch that veered between silky and snappy. The famous Ondine was steely rather than mercurial. Thibaudet was obviously eschewing the stereotypical swoony, decadent, opalescence interpretation that Debussy sometimes evokes. Anyone expecting a druggy, perfumed performance would have been disappointed, but by the final Feux d’artifice, which poured as smoothly as molten metal, one grew to an acuter appreciation of the classical strength and structure of Debussy’s music. Thibaudet’s interpretation of Ravel’s Miroirs (1904-05) was marginally more emphatic. In Une barque sur l’ocean he produced ravishing waves of sound. In the Alborado del gracioso one marvelled at his incredible glissandi. Alas, the delicate, fading, pianissimo, final bell-like chords of La Vallee des cloches were shattered by the insistent ringing of a cell phone (the perpetrators of such audio-vandalism should be fined and have their cell phones confiscated). The program concluded with a breathtaking performance of Regard de l’eglise d’amour, the last movement of Olivier Messiaen’s Vingt regards sur l’enfant Jesus. Thibaudet dissected the technical difficulties with astounding precision, and served up the morsels of Messiaen’s holy music like a priest or chef. Greeted by a well merited ovation, Thibaudet played several delicious encores: Liszt’s transcription of Isolde’s Liebestod from Wagner's "Tristan und Isolde", a Chopin waltz, and two works by Duke Ellington and Bill Evans. It all ended too soon, this rollercoaster ride of emotions from funereal tragedy to jazzy joy. The hall was packed with piano fans and Thibaudet’s large gay following. Thibaudet did not wear his red socks or fancy waistcoat, though his hair is blond again. Pianists Stephen Hough and Stewart Goodyear were in the audience. > Carnegie Hall website
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