Young Critic Review: LIZZIE BALL & JAMES PEARSON – Grappelli and Friends
Lizzie Ball and James Pearson this afternoon presented a programme of music by the “grandfather of jazz violinists” Stéphane Grappelli and his contemporaries. This included a piano solo by George Shearing, piano and violin duets from Grappelli and Shearing’s album “Reunion”, some Cleo Laine classics, and a piece from Grappelli’s collaboration with Yehudi Menuhin using a piano arrangement of Menuhin’s violin part.
The concert began with a spoken introduction from Lizzie above a long and supremely relaxed piano introduction to their first piece. This sense of calm and musicality was a stand-out aspect of the entire performance, with the music rarely stopping even when the players verbally addressed the audience. It was this which allowed the audience to relax into their seats and find full enjoyment in the pieces presented. The visible strength of the friendship between Lizzie and James, regular musical collaborators, made their performance even more engaging as it was clear that they enjoyed what they were playing: for them, making music is clearly never about money or complementary drinks, it is about their love of the piano and violin respectively.
Part way through the concert, Lizzie revealed that because Grappelli enjoyed improvising and diverting from the plan – which caused some friction when he recorded with classically-trained Yehudi Menuhin – many of the pieces they played together today had to be transcribed note by note from original Grappelli recordings by James himself. Much as he is a man of many musical talents (including turning a violin part into piano music for a duet of two violins), so Lizzie later reminded us she is, when she put down her violin to sing two Cleo Laine songs; the second an alternative version of George Shearing’s “Lullaby of Birdland”, with original lyrics by Laine celebrating the Shearing’s knighthood in 2007. In “It Don’t Mean a Thing if it Ain’t Got that Swing”, the final (official) piece of the concert, she even switched between violin and voice, James playing fluidly regardless of which instrument she chose.
Technically, they were impeccable as usual. Although James’ relaxed jazz playing is not the kind I’m familiar with, the energy he exuded throughout the concert was always most visible in his fingers. His light touch in Shearing’s solo piano version of “On the Street Where you Live” from My Fair Lady created an almost ethereal atmosphere in the Hub and a hush of quiet and calm not felt in most of the energetic concert. Unfazed by a few missed notes in “Makin’ Whoopee”, he proved himself a consummate professional by continuing without a flicker of doubt or concern as the piano part built in preparation for the re-entry of the violin.
Similarly, Lizzie remained lively and excited throughout, sometimes laughing over her violin; and I heard many remarks from the audience during the interval about her incredible range, swinging from the depths of the violin’s voice to its absolute heights, which seemed to hover near the edge of hearing. Her sudden and confident changes between bowing and plucking the instrument added texture and variety to the performance, as did, of course, the few sung pieces included in the programme.
The piano and violin or piano and voice combinations were always balanced; never during the hour and forty minutes of concert did one outweigh the other dynamically. Instead, they rose and fell in sync, with the melody always audible regardless of who held it, even when it was in the high, nearly-inaudible upper notes of either instrument.
A standout section of the concert for much of the audience was Hungarian “gypsy-style” piece “Csárdás” by Vittorio Monti in which many audience members could be seen tapping their feet and playing phantom instruments on their knees. The sense of fun exuded by James and Lizzie throughout the concert was magnified here as they taunted each other on stage and James was forced to leave the piano stool on the threat of being impaled by the violin. They and the audience laughed throughout this piece in particular, and the joy felt by the musicians made the concert that much more enjoyable for everyone in attendance.
On the whole then, this was a truly exceptional concert and a fitting end to the duo’s time as Associate Artists of Lichfield Festival; and I am sure many audience members, including myself, hope it does not mark an end to their appearances at the Festival altogether.
By Sophie N