Sonatas, Spirited and Serene
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| 'Cellist Hilary Boxer and Pianist Susan Steele |
From a series of review on 'Classical Journey',
Tuesday 7th December 2010
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| A joyous union |
And on Monday at lunchtime, in the Exeter Central Library music room, we heard the eagerely awaited third concert in the 'Tasty Music' series. 'Cellist Hilary Boxer and pianist Susan Steele played 'Sonatas, Spirited and Serene', Bach's sonata for viola da gamba, Bocherini's 'cello and piano sonata in C, and Beethoven's 'cello sonata in A. Hilary's incredible expertise with the 'cello is already familiar to admiring audiences. Susan, although also familiar as an accompanist, was something of a revelation. A striking figure, she is utterly mesmerising at the piano, building complex moods with consummate skill. Hilary, of course, continued to amaze as always. The final sonata, Beethoven, was utterly extraordinary. Susan picked out single notes deftly in what was almost a jazz style in the lead up to each of her marvellous duets with Hilary. All three sonatas were so well received that the audience were treated to an encore - Piazzola. Soft and gentle, Hilary described it as 'like a hot bath' after the the excitement of the three sonatas. A perfect end to an exceptional and thrilling concert. There are plans for a repeat performance of the Beethoven sonata in the future, and Mike Gluyas was there to record the performance. So listen out for extracts on the 'Classical Journey'.
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