The Washington times., 1921-12-13
GNAzFR|EDMAN
USESDUO-ART IN
PIANO RECITAL
Composer Displays Marvellous
Tone and Technique in Two
instrument Selections.

lgnaz Friedman, remarkable
pianist. was heard for the first time
in Washington at the Masonic Audi
torium last evening, In a piano re-
cital that included one of those
unique combinations Of modern
muse invention. some two-p. ano Sc
iections with the composer at both
p.anos. Not an impossible physical
feat, FOR the second piano was Mr..
Frledman's Duo-Art record of his
own playing.
FRIEDMAN ls a master of tone and
OF technique. There is something
different in his tones. round. mellow,
peari-llke IN warmth anu Nitai IN
resonance. His is a huge power,
too, for with the most subtle OF soft
tones. he combines a force that rings
out chords that vibrate with the
power. the overtones, Of a whole
Mozart Is Marvellous.
His Mozart is a marvel, a NINA
ture OF exquisite color and texture.
painted In opalescent beauty as
transparent and pure as tone can be
made. 1t was the Rondo, A minor,
an unforgettable gem. Next in rare
appeal was the Chopin "Nocturne."
tne sharp minor not too often
heard. Ever Chopin, mere wer.
moonlit tones, qite the rarest pianis.
simo, where every note is scaled in
remarkable dynamics. watery trills,
iiiuslve runs. The Chopin Etude in
thirds, opus rs, No. 8, was a wonder,
rapid, notable in meditation, and hold.
Ing mood that seemed filled with
music laughter in its brightness.
There was. too. a Hummel Rondo,
+ flat major, that rippleL In very
JOY, and the Bach-Busoni "Chaconne"
was romantic Bach, dreamy, with
velvet In tone, and massive choral
CHORDS that the piano pedal did not
at all account for. He played also
and the "POlonaise," A flat, that was
rather more erratic than seductive.
TwO-Piano Genius.
With the Duo-Art, interpreted by
himself, Mr.. Friedman had what he
called a perfect colleague" The
List symphonic poem, Les Pre-
sympathy between the two instru-
ments. Interpreted in huge form,
this meditation on life was quietly
ominous in covered tones built up
orchestrally, in melody of exquisite
soft beauty, and in crescendos as
swift as the wind, as vital as an
orchestral laugh of the Valkyries
The interchange of rapid passages
between the two pianos was only
discerned with the eye. watching the
descending of the ghost" piano
keys. The isolated notes. coming
into perfect accord, were even more
revealing. They possessed the same
graduation in tone, in mood, they
sang the same melodic cadence. Such
music is the marvel Of our age.
As composer, and also in a two
piano arrangement. Mr.. Friedman
gave his, Suite for Two Pianos" a
broad work in three movements.
Playing il apparently lad libitum"
the coordination OF the Instruments
vas astonishing. II holds nobility.
pianistic development, a choral that
is filled with tone atmosphere. and
a rare finale. capricious and de-
lightful in it's vagaries, that brought
out very wizardry of piano
technique.
As encores this great artist of the
keyboard played his own waltz. Ellie |
with fairy-like ripples of !
Tone, and his own arrangement of
Gaertner's Viennese Waltz. No. /.
The pianos were a Steinway and a |
Steinway. the concert being /
presented by the o. ]. DeMoll Piano |
To know Friedman is TO
know a new master-pianist. His is
a great and compelling art.
JESSIE. MacBRIDE.