The Ukrainian pianist Mark Taratushkin dares to tackle tricky compositions.

Krefeld. The fact that 20th century music still has a harder time in the concert hall than Mozart or Beethoven was demonstrated this weekend at the Kawai concert. The large hall in the music school was less than half full. With pieces by Béla Bartók and Sergei Prokofiev, the Ukrainian-born pianist Mark Taratushkin had put together a program that was anything but easy.

But anyone who has not experienced the artist, who is just 24 years old and lives in Berlin, has really missed something. Right from the first piece, Bartók’s suite “Im Freien”, the pianist impressed with the intensity and technical brilliance of his playing. Whether it was the almost martial opening “With drums and whistles” or later the mysterious “Sounds of the night”, Taratushkin interpreted the different facets seemingly effortlessly.

The pianist becomes one with the instrument through his posture

What is also striking about his playing is the way he leans forward, as if he wanted to merge completely with his instrument. The fact that this intensive playing also means great physical exertion became increasingly clear during the other Bartók pieces up to the interval. Another suite and the improvisations on a Hungarian peasant song were also an acoustic challenge for the audience.

The second part of the concert, dedicated exclusively to Prokofiev, was a relaxing experience. The “Visions fugitives” comprise twenty short pieces, wonderful miniatures that leave anything but a fleeting impression. The pianist was offered a wide range of expressive possibilities, which he exploited in a very differentiated manner. He played seemingly lightly “con eleganza” or more expressively “molto accentuato”, spanning an impressive tonal arc from the first to the last movement.

The artist earned much applause for his expressive playing

In the last short item on the program, “Sarcasm”, Taratushkin once again showed his expressive side, picking up on the first part of the evening. The highly concentrated audience celebrated this exceptional artist with much applause.

By Michaela Plattenteich