Next to the writer of real estate advertisements, the autobiographer is the most suspect of prose artists.
Donal HenahanIt might be argued that genuine spontaneity is not really possible or desirable so long as printed scores of great works exist. All modern musicians are, for better or worse, prisoners of Gutenberg.
Donal HenahanPianists of extraordinary talent, such as Christina Petrowska,spend a large part of their early lives perfecting techniqueโฆMiss Petrowska,a Canadian with a phenomenal ability to play the most difficult music cleanly, gave a demonstration of her achievements at Carnegie Recital Hall. A product of the Juilliard School who studied with Karlheinz Stockhausen and Gyorgy Ligeti in Europe, Miss Petrowska built most of her program around fiercely difficult contemporary works. She has fingers that work like chrome-plated pistons, and her high-seated position let her bring pulverizing power to bear.
Donal HenahanMiss Petrowska,an excellent pianist, held the audience transfixed with Chou Wen-chungโs work. Miss Petrowska was coolness itself in getting the hardware into the piano and out againโฆin Messiaen, a feeling for the musicโs reverent sobriety combined to produce an absorbing performance.
Donal Henahan