Claire shares this review of the recent West Wight Arts Association concert, featuring the talented pianist, Thomas Luke. Ed
It would be hard to find a more fitting way to end the West Wight Arts Association 2024-25 concert season last Saturday evening at Freshwater Memorial Hall, than with a recital given by home-grown talent and recent international prize winner, pianist Thomas Luke.
In what was clearly a deeply personal choice of programming – including one of his own heartfelt compositions, “All the things I’ve learnt without you“, Thomas began the evening by inviting the audience to enjoy interpreting the pieces and theme of the evening, ‘ Transcendence ,’ in their own individual way.
He explained how he had taken four of J S Bach’s Preludes and Fugues from The Well Tempered Clavier and segued each one with a work from another composer which he considered to be an emotional match.
An innocently joyful marriage
The first pairing was an innocently joyful marriage of BWV 854 in E major and Mendelssohn’s Song Without Words, op 19, no 1, which Thomas followed with a sensitive performance of Schumann’s “Gesange der Fruhe“, before the second two-piece offering, BWV 849 in C sharp minor and Beethoven’s Sonata op 109.
As with all four Bach Preludes and Fugues, Thomas played with exquisite clarity, while his Beethoven interpretation shone with emotional intensity and commanding technique.
Free reign
The two post-interval Bach pairings, BWV 872 and BWV 878 gave Thomas free reign to display a kaleidescope of colour and improvisational style with Lizst’s Transcendental Etude no 11, and to then round off the evening with the daring, challenging and technically demanding Scriabin Sonata no 5.
A transcendental night to remember and cherish.
