Finghin Collins, Kendal Town Hall

KENDAL Midday Concert Club recently presented a piano recital given by yet another of those world-widely-eminent musicians it has always had the happy knack of engaging. Finghin Collins, a pianist perhaps unfamiliar to many South Lakelanders, but one of Ireland’s currently most successful musicians, was at the town hall with an interesting and unusual combination of music by two composers - a fellow Celt, John Field, and his near-contemporary, Frédéric Chopin.

John Field was represented by two of his celebrated Nocturnes and his Andante Intédit in E flat. Eighteenth century commentaries on Field’s piano playing praised his "poetic use of the keyboard, his delicacy of nuance and the production of a singing tone." Those tributes would not have been out of place when referring to Finghin Collins' interpretations of the Nocturnes. There was, indeed, a fine (but not over-dominant) singing tone illuminating Field’s melodies; these were spaciously-shaped, carefully woven into lengthy, sensitively-phrased strands and frequently ornamented with a delicate tracery of shimmering cascades. In the Andante Intédit the theme was announced by precisely-voiced chords, whilst the subsequent variations possessed clarity of texture and neatness of passage work that ranged from the delicate to the intense.

It’s all a matter of personal taste, but I was disappointed, in general terms, with Collin’s performance of Chopin’s 24 Preludes. I was distracted throughout by an overriding sense of urgency, of the need to proceed onto the next piece; poise and calmness between pieces were missing. Superb technical facility was always apparent - virtuosity was on show in grand fashion. But - those extra ingredients that make for a charismatic performance were frequently not there. The more impassioned Preludes tended to suffer the most, many being too loud with muddy textures and hurried, untidy phrasing. There were, however, in most of them, be they passionate or delicate, treasured moments of pure beauty, poetic elegance and refined musicianship.

His encore - Chopin’s Nocturne in F sharp major, Op 15 No 2 - mirrored the sunshine outside!

BRIAN PAYNES