Olga At The Proms....

Van Cliburn Gold Medalist Olga Kern, late of Columbia, South Carolina and the Southeastern Piano Festival, chose wisely for her Prom debut last night. She has played the Rachmaninoff "Rhapsody on a Tneme of Paganini" on tour with orchestra, and at many important points in her career. Having just heard her Rachmaninoff Concerto No. 2 here in Columbia in June, I was ready for the glistening technique and the fiery attach and brio. Olga plays with elan, and what she does is very much her own. The "Rhapsody" emerged here as the show piece it is, dependent on quick thinking and constant control. Unfortunately,she misjudged the notorious acoustics of the Albert Hall...and its famous echo. Some passages were so fast they emerged in somewhat of a blur: at other times it was hard to hear clearly her rapid fire octaves. She did have a superb accompanist in Leonard Slatkin , who was at the ready throughout. The Royal Philharmonic has played this work constantly, so they were spot on also. It seemed that she favored an extremely fast tempo in general, although she did slow down enough to make the more famous melodies attractive and colorful. Olga doesn't mind making a personal effect at times. Surely she would have to point these out to the conductor, as they can be unusual. Slatkin caught every one. Her response from the audience was warm, but not as demonstrative as here. Perhaps the English like a certain element she has not quite reached yet: that might be explained as taking more time in the bravura elements so that they speak clearly, without excessive pressure, and not fussing too heavily with the melodic bits. No doubt she will be invited back.