Gabriela Montero plays Ravel

Gabriela Montero is arguably the finest Venezuelan pianist. Her technical proficiency and talent for improvising has made her one of the most remarkable virtuosos in classical music. She has performed with the most prestigious conductors and orchestras around the world.

Venezuela is no strange when it comes to producing pianists of the highest order. Montero’s obvious precedent would be Teresa Carreño, one of the most respected piano players of the 19th century, revered by many of the greatest composers of her time. One of my first encounters with Montero’s astonishing playing was at a concert in which she performed Ravel’s Piano Concerto in G Major, with the Orquesta Sinfonica Simon Bolivar, conducted by Lorin Maazel. That evening was certainly memorable, since I ended up in awe of her outstanding competence. A few months ago my passion for Ravel made me discover a recent recording of that concerto, so I just couldn’t wait to hear it.  “Exciting”, that is how I would summarize her reading of the already vivacious work Ravel wrote inspired by the jazz he heard in his visit to the United States. Ravel pays obvious homage to Gershwin, but it is the Frenchman’s penchant for orchestration and harmony that makes this Concerto a unique piece in the repertoire. Montero plays this concerto with joy, and her virtuosity was expectedly impeccable. There are just a couple of issues with this recording. The first is its sound quality. The mixing is just not right: the percussion at times sounds muffled, the strings are missing some brightness, and there are certain sections (violas, cellos and basses) that are too weak. As to Montero’s playing, my only remark is that I missed some refinement, especially in its beautiful adagio. There is a lot of sentiment there, truth be told, but if there is one trait present throughout the entire Ravel oeuvre is elegance, and I’m afraid I found very little of it in this album. The third and last movement seems to pick up some of those flaws. It is so filled with energy that one overlooks the weak points in the previous movements. Hearing it definitely put a smile on my face, and since this album definitely made me happy to revive that unforgettable Montero moment, I recommend it joyfully.