On the afternoon of Sunday, 5th May 2024, Elisabeth Brauss was greeted with a huge round of applause as she took to the stage, bowing modestly before taking her seat at the Steinway. As soon as she struck the first notes of Beethoven’s Piano Sonata No. 18 in E flat major, Op. 31, No. 3 "The Hunt”, the audience knew they were in the presence of a supremely gifted pianist, who plays with great feeling and astonishing precision.
From the back of the auditorium, her long elegant fingers were often a blur as she tackled the most demanding passages with total absorption and flawless technique. Opening with the allegro and its late appearance of the tonic chord, through the scherzo with its unexpected pauses and playful nature and the gentle, tender minuetto, Elisabeth kept the audience entranced with her exuberance and versatility. The sonata concludes with a vivacious sonata-form tarantella, its passage resembling a horn call which earned the piece its nickname of ‘The Hunt’. This piece shows Beethoven’s great sense of humour, a man able to laugh as well as weep. Elisabeth brought this side of his character to life with great skill.
The next item Elisabeth had chosen for her programme was Prokofiev’s 10 pieces for Piano, Op.12. This fuses classical tradition with modernistic elements and is, at times, daringly discordant. Elisabeth captured its wide range of emotions and moods perfectly, from the delicate melodies of the first piece to the ebullient chords of the last, dealing almost effortlessly with its rhythmic complexities as she took us from moments of tranquility to moments of great passion. It was my favourite part of the recital.
After an interval, during which the almost capacity audience shared superlatives about Elisabeth’s performance so far, she returned to another warm round of applause and introduced the final piece: Robert Schumann’s ‘Carnaval’, Op.9. She explained that many characters from Schumann’s life are represented in its 21 pieces, like Chopin and Paganini, his future wife Clara, even Schumann himself through his two alter egos: the poetic, melancholic side of his character and his wild, frantic nature. ‘Carnaval’ is all about masks and disguise and so figures from the comedian dell’arte also appear, like Pierrot the clown and Harlequin. “It really is a celebration of life,” said Elisabeth, “so let’s celebrate!”
And right from the exhilarating opening chords of the ‘Préambule’, she led us through this colourful, celebratory parade of figures from a masked ball. Sometimes mischievous, sometimes more introspective, these characters are introduced to us through Elisabeth’s joyful performance. She plays with great sensitivity and her whole heart.
“You are one of the greatest audiences I have ever experienced,” said Elisabeth as she was called back for an encore with thunderous applause, treating us to her favourite short piece: Chopin’s Waltz in F major, a perfect end to a wonderful afternoon.
