In the last newsletter I let you all know about Dan Knight's CD on the Rives Audio label. I still highly encourage you to get this CD. It is one of the finest technical recordings of a piano I have ever heard and the work is so compelling.
This newsletter I want to review the performance at the HE show. Of course, you will say "I'm biased." which is absolutely true, but I do think I can bring this to you objectively, particularly compared to the CD which I am intimately familiar.
Dan Knight played the Walt Whitman Suite with the same brilliance and passion that can be found on the CD. However, there were a few things that were less than stellar for the performance. For one, the piano was out of tune, particularly in the lower octaves which is used extensively in this piece. Second, the piano was a baby grand, not a concert grand which really lends itself to this work. The overtones used in this piece were not able to really develop on the smaller piano. The third issue was the vocals, which for a house PA were not bad, but not "audiophile" grade either.
Live is always a pleasure for me because it has a direct connect to the entire piece, nothing can be changed during a live performance, and some things like those I've mentioned are just part of the process. As always, I strongly encourage you to seek out live performances where ever possible.
After the Walt Whitman Suite I asked Dan if he would like to play a jazz piece. He of course said yes and the audience applauded. Instead of Dan picking the piece he asked the audience what they wanted to hear. Someone said "Rhapsody in Blue". Dan said, "Fine, now what jazz artists can we imagine playing this?" The answers were, Art Tatum, Duke Ellington, and Thelonious Monk. Dan proceeded to play the a melody mimicking these pianists playing Rhapsody in Blue. The audience was really astounded.
You can read more about his CD here.
Happy Listening.
