Palette of differing musical colours

Former Whanganui High School students Elena Morgan and Max Munneke back in town for a concert.

On Saturday, July 22, Wanganui Music Society hosted a concert in the Concert Chamber of the War Memorial Centre by two former Wanganui residents, Elena Morgan on cello and Max Munneke on the piano. Both performers are former recipients of the Kenrick Christie Scholarship awarded by the Music Society and both are now studying at Waikato University, Elena with James Tennant and Max with Katherine Austin.

They presented a varied programme which was very much enjoyed by the small but appreciative audience.

Max started the concert with two pieces for solo piano, a Bach Prelude and Fugue, followed by two works by Chopin. From the first notes of the Bach, there was a beautiful clear line of melody and the individual voices were shown with wonderful clarity. The build-up of musical intensity in the Fugue was very well crafted and the music ebbed and flowed with lovely phrasing. The Chopin pieces are part of the mainstream piano repertoire, especially the nicknamed Revolutionary, and are a major undertaking for any professional pianist. They were, on the whole, well played, especially the Revolutionary which swept along with the grandeur it requires.

It was interesting for the audience to then hear more Bach, this time one of the seminal works for cellists, one of the Unaccompanied Suites. This was well played by Elena with a beautiful sound and, in particular, the last Gigue, in particular, danced along full of life. Elena was then joined by Ingrid Culliford on piano to play Variations on a Slovak Theme by Martinu, a Czech composer. What a fabulous piece this was, exploiting the full range of sounds of the cello and here Elena showed great control and gave us a wonderful intensity of sound, equally matched by the sensitive accompanying by Ingrid.

To end the recital, Elena and Max joined forces to play two movements from the well-known Cello Sonata in C Major by Prokofiev. This swept along in fine style with both performers capturing the differing styles of the music well, in particular the playful quality of the Scherzo. They shared a good understanding of the music and both showcased a rich palette of differing musical colours.

Both of these young performers were warmly applauded at the end of the concert and although there were some mistakes and some moments of inaccurate intonation, these did not detract from the overall enjoyment of the afternoon.

Annie Hunt is both a professional cellist and string teacher. She has recently returned to New Zealand having lived for 37 years in the UK.

Wanganui Music Society Concert
Saturday, July 22
Reviewed by Annie Hunt
(Wanganui Midweek 9/8/17)