How uncomfortable was last year’s performance of Ivo Pogorelich in the “Friends of Music” hall, so exciting was his presence this year on November 4 in the same hall. This time the pianist performed Chopin’s second piano concerto. Philippe Haugen, the chief French musician, conducted the State Orchestra of Athens.

Pogorelich brought the “male” and “female” aspects of music to the conversation. In the first and third parts of the concerto, the pianist clearly showed the contribution of the left hand, thus the structure and articulation of the music. Thus, the smooth melody in the right hand, and consequently the interpretation as a whole, acquired weight and solidity. On the contrary, in the second movement, with a “nocturnal” mood of rare beauty, Pogorelich allowed the melodic line to flow freely and with great plasticity, expressing musical arabesques and pirouettes. All this with breathtaking technique and craftsmanship of unsurpassed purity, as always. In general, it was a very personal, but in this case pleasantly refreshing, and therefore interesting and convincing reading of the concerto, which can most often be heard in stereotypical, indifferent interpretations.

The interpretation of Philippe Auguin’s “Fantastic Agreement” was a success.

In Chopin’s concerto, the role of the orchestra is relatively limited. However, the tonally problematic first note of the violins itself was reminiscent of the constant problems of this ensemble. Earlier, there was an introduction to Mendelssohn’s Hebrides, essentially a small symphonic poem, the musical dramaturgy of which was singled out by Ogen. The tense episodes were heard successfully, while for the lyrics the violins lacked the softness of sound, a quality absolutely necessary in Mendelssohn’s music. This kindness was possessed by the clarinetist Spyros Mourikis, whose contribution stood out.

Berlioz’s “Fantastic Symphony” requires other qualities from the orchestra. It relies much more on woodwinds, winds and brass, its orchestration is inherent in musical dramaturgy, and the work as a whole is much more “programmatic”, i.e. specifically “descriptive” than Mendelssohn’s introduction, conveying mostly atmosphere and impressions. Augen led the orchestra confidently and firmly through the music, masterfully creating in the first movement an “obsessive thematic idea” that runs through the entire piece. In the waltz of the second part, the four harpists convincingly conveyed the charm of the music. The cor anglais solo (Stella Nikolaidis) was also atmospheric, as was his dialogue with the oboe (Yiannis Oikonomou), and in the last movement the woodwinds played with an appropriate orgiastic sound a “gathering of witches”, which the composer foresees the culmination of a nightmare experienced by the protagonist and narrator this “fantastic” agreement. Augen made the most of the data, giving each movement and pulse a distinct character, as well as tension in the music from the beginning to the impressive final climax.