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Serkin delivered compelling close to Tutunov season Tutunov piano series pianist Peter Serkin Courtesy Photo Friday Apr 27, 2018 at 1:49 PM Apr 27, 2018 at 1:49 PM By Jeffrey GillespieFor the Tidings Friday, April 20, marked the final concert of the season in the ever-more-popular Tutunov piano series at the Oregon Center for the Arts at Southern Oregon University. Dr. Alexander Tutunov has delivered multiple international performing artists to the stage at the SOU Music Recital Hall, and the final concert was no exception, with distinguished international pianist Peter Serkin performing work of Mozart and Bach. Mr. Serkin is a compelling performer, and he delivered an evening of exquisite music with a delivery that was varied and sensitive. There were notable eccentricities — Serkin is extraordinarily focused, occupying a space in which only he and the piano seem to exist, with the audience as an engaged but distant second to that relationship. Sartorially both rumpled and elegant, Serkin hunches over the piano with pristine concentration. He hums audibly as he engages each section. After playing, his hands hover over the keyboard in conclusion, as though the maestro is engaged in some sort of pranic healing process with his instrument. This style of performance might come over as a little bit twee to the casual observer, but it’s clear that Serkin is a passionate and sincere artist with more than a touch of the virtuoso. He is now just shy of his 60th year as a professional performer, having begun his career in 1959 at the Marlboro Music Festival in Vermont. Of course, Serkin’s father was the luminary pianist Rudolf Serkin, and his grandfather was Adolf Busch. Music reaches deep into the blood and bones of his family. All of this pedigree was apparent in Serkin’s wonderful opening performance of the Mozart Adagio in B Minor, a piece of music that showcases an uncommon style for the composer. It is filled with elegant and moody moments of great intensity; Serkin holds himself over the keys like a man possessed, executing each phrase with a distinct and rewarding technique. The program doubles down on the Austrian composer with the Piano Sonata in B-Flat Minor of 1789, another lyrical and impactful work that is also somewhat somber with robust use of counterpoint. Serkin’s performance is well-executed with a steady, experienced approach. After intermission, the 70-year-old Serkin plunges ambitiously into an epic rendition of the Bach Goldberg Variations, BWV 988, a work of significant scope that requires a skilled hand. Serkin scales a mountain of sublime music, and does a beautiful job with Bach’s 1741 masterwork. According to the program notes (an astonishingly articulate and well-crafted guide to the evening, written by Ed White) Bach originally titled the piece “Aria with Diverse Variations.” According to White, “the piece only acquired the Goldberg nickname 60 years later... in (a) pathbreaking 1802 biography of Bach.” Serkin delivered a fine evening of great music, and the crowd at hand gave him a warm and enthusiastic standing ovation at the end of the night. It was a fitting end to the current season of Tutunov concerts, which have been marked by a consistent excellence that has been well received by Ashland audiences. Dr. Tutunov was on hand to announce the program for next season. Season subscriptions were on sale directly following the concert. Judging by the number of audience members who lingered, the 2018-2019 series should be rooted in a similarly enthusiastic spirit from performers and patrons alike. — Ashland resident Jeffrey Gillespie is a Tidings columnist, arts reviewer and freelance writer. Email him at [email protected].