![\"Julian](\"https:\/\/ozartsreviewonline.com\/oz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Credit-Julian-Hargreaves4-200x300.jpg\")
When Ray Chen puts bow to string, it instantly triggers memories of violin greats: Yehudi Menuhin, Heifetz, Elman in their prime. There is about his playing a seeming effortlessness, a lyricism that places him well to the forefront of the world\u2019s current line-up of fiddle greats. The magic so gratifyingly in evidence when Chen gave a recital with Timothy Young here in Perth a few years ago, was no less splendidly in evidence on this occasion.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
This was wondrously apparent in his account of Ysaye\u2019s Sonata for solo violin in D minor. It\u2019s from opus 23, one of a number of solo violin works which are ferociously difficult, no-man\u2019s-land for any but the most skilled of fiddlers. I think of it as an extended, ruthlessly demanding cadenza \u2013 and in every sense, Chan was more than up to the challenge. Now lyrical, now passionate, the playing was informed by an immediacy that brought one face to face, as it were,\u00a0 with the composer.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Matthew Hindson\u2019s Violin Sonata No 1 \u2013 Dark Matter (2018) \u2013 has been given its world premiere performances on Chen and Quentin\u2019s current Musica Viva tour. With an alert and very skilled Julien Quentin at the piano, we were taken into Hindson\u2019s idiosyncratic musical world.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The Sonata is dedicated to the composer\u2019s father who passed away shortly after the work was completed. In a program note, Hindson tells of his childhood years when he and his siblings were taken to violin lessons by their father, \u201clearning the violin alongside us\u201d. Much of the first movement is quiet \u2013 it comes across like a gentle, melancholy song, rather like a sad lullaby. In the second movement, virtuosity comes to the fore. Presented with considerable intensity, it\u2019s an essay in passionate virtuosity.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Attributed to Vitali, the Chaconne in G minor was the perfect curtain raiser, those oh-so-well-known notes here sounding as fresh and beautiful as a flower just opened. And its moments of defiant power were no less impressively presented.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Whether gently introspective or passionately virtuosic, Chen and Quentin were much on their mettle in Franck\u2019s too-frequently programmed Sonata in A \u2013 but not even intrusive, ignorant applause between movements could detract from the frankly stunning wizardry these two musicians brought to their offering. And then the duo gave us a sizzlingly virtuosic account of Ravel\u2019s Tzigane. Bravissimo!<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Perth Concert Hall reviewed by Neville Cohn When Ray Chen puts bow to string, it instantly triggers memories of violin greats: Yehudi Menuhin, Heifetz, Elman in their prime. There is about his playing a seeming effortlessness, a lyricism<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[3],"tags":[18,17,192,194,193],"class_list":["post-144","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-live-performance","tag-chon","tag-cohn","tag-julien-quentin","tag-matthew-hindsons-violin-sonata-no-1","tag-ray-chen"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p9Yv33-2k","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":35,"url":"https:\/\/ozartsreviewonline.com\/oz\/w-a-symphony\/","url_meta":{"origin":144,"position":0},"title":"W.A. 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This young violinist is still an undergraduate\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Live Performance"","block_context":{"text":"Live Performance","link":"https:\/\/ozartsreviewonline.com\/oz\/category\/live-performance\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":187,"url":"https:\/\/ozartsreviewonline.com\/oz\/royal-schools-music-club-2\/","url_meta":{"origin":144,"position":5},"title":"Royal Schools Music Club","author":"reviewer","date":"November 16, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Darlington Ensemble Eileen Joyce Studio, UWA reviewed by John Meyer \u00a0 The November concert saw Associate Concertmaster of WASO, Semra Lee-Smith (a founding member of the Darlington Ensemble) join with associate artist Gladys Chua in an attractive programme of works for violin and piano.\u00a0 The two most substantial pieces were\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Live Performance"","block_context":{"text":"Live Performance","link":"https:\/\/ozartsreviewonline.com\/oz\/category\/live-performance\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Semra and Gladys","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ozartsreviewonline.com\/oz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Semra-and-Gladys.jpeg-e1542345653303-225x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ozartsreviewonline.com\/oz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/144","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ozartsreviewonline.com\/oz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ozartsreviewonline.com\/oz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ozartsreviewonline.com\/oz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ozartsreviewonline.com\/oz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=144"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ozartsreviewonline.com\/oz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/144\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ozartsreviewonline.com\/oz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=144"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ozartsreviewonline.com\/oz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=144"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ozartsreviewonline.com\/oz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=144"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}