THE REMY LOUMBROZO AND ARIANNA GOLDINA PIANO DUO, Thursday, March 22, 7:30 p.m., Rose Wagner Performing Arts Center Black Box Theatre, one performance only.
For a piano aficionado the only thing better than 88 keys has got to be 176 keys.
Thursday evening, the Arianna Goldina and Remy Loumbrozo Duo proved that to be true, showing that two pianos can equal twice the fun.
Alternating pieces performed by the duo on one piano, four hands, and then two pianos, allowed the husband-and-wife team to showcase the repertoire and capacity of what piano duos can be.
The evening began with an intimate, tender performance of Schubert's Rondo in A Major. Rather than striving for a completely unified sound, the duo's distinctly individual piano voices interacted like two close friends over a cup of tea, speaking in gentle tones about a variety of meaningful, heartfelt subjects.
They showed real strength in the piano-to-mezzo-forte range, with a variety of expression within what otherwise could have been a rather confining mood.
Brahms' Variations on a Theme by J. Haydn followed, played on two pianos. The dynamic changed from intimate to orchestral, as the sounds from the two artists meshed to create the illusion of an instrument much bigger than just two pianos.
The duo utilized a wide range of color, which not only helped create the orchestral sound but sidestepped the potential monotony of similar instruments.
Loumbrozo and Goldina proved themselves fluent in the language of music with Franz Lizst's "Reminiscences de Norma." Featuring some really delightful moments, the piece explored many different moods, all of which the pair carried off with panache.
The weakest part of the program had to be Chabrier's "Espana." The piece itself didn't have as much musical depth and interest as the others, which limited the duo's ability to bring out subtleties and rich musical nuances. With that element gone, it drew attention to occasional stray notes and intermittent "muddy," or unclear, passages, which occasionally occurred in the other pieces, as well.
Ravel's "Rhapsodie espagnole" and the "La Valse" that followed, however, couldn't have been more rich in color or energy. The depth of this music more than made up for "Espana," and the duo took full advantage of every musical opportunity, delivering a truly delightful, rich treat.
E-MAIL: rcline@desnews.com