Approaching the IVCI finish line, focusing on my personal impressions of two of the six finalists

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Now the famously non-arm-twisting judging procedure of the International Violin Competition of Indianapolis once again approaches validation, as six finalists merge from 38 registered participants who convened on Sept. 17 here to begin the well-organized sorting out of scores independently arrived out, with  any outlying totals ineffective in swaying the juried result.

At the end of the concerto finals Saturday night, the three medalists will be announced at Hilbert Circle Theater, with those finishing in fourth, fifth and sixth place honored as laureates.

Having missed a large amount of the preliminary and semi-final rounds, it's no surprise that I have first-hand impressions of only two participants to offer, based on those initial phases. 

Karisa Chiu

My most recent impression is of Karisa Chiu, who comes from a musical family with Indianapolis roots. Her uncle, Frederic Chiu, grew up here and made a notably celebrated appearance at the Van Cliburn competition in 1993, launching his professional career. Her teachers have included not only Jaime Laredo, president of the IVCI jury, but also Ida Kavafian, silver medalist at the first IVCI in 1982

She happened to be the last player in the semi-final round that concluded Monday night at the Indiana History Center. With Thomas Hoppe at the piano, she played a tender, subtly contrasted Beethoven Sonata No 6 in A Major, following it with a major 20th-century sonata for violin and piano by Sergei Prokofiev. The haunting character she lent to the Russian work raised my expectations for the current competition's commissioned piece, Rhapsody No. 3 for Solo Violin by Jessie Montgomery.

I was able to hear Montgomery's work several times, and was immediately struck by Chiu'a extroverted interpretation, which in no way put the rhapsody on an unvaried expressive plane. The feeling of outreach was well-structured, conveying a gathering of resources for whatever outburst was to follow. She applied a convincing reconsideration of the music's gregariousness toward the end, as if to indicate that an outgoing personality needs to take stock occasionally to summon up more characteristic dynamism. The performance seemed to reveal genuine affection for the new piece.

Her display piece, Jeno Hubay's "Fantasie brillante," op. 3, no. 3, is a lesser-known salute to Bizet's opera "Carmen" than the treatment Pablo Sarasate gave to the music in his "Carmen Fantasy," which had been played the previous evening. Both works make much of the dour Fate motive, but otherwise follow different paths. 

The Hubay is more of an assemblage, while the Sarasate ia a well-integrated medley. "Fanasie brillante' is sometimes content to have the piano state the big tunes, like the Toreador Song, letting the violin surmount the highly ornamented technical hurdles. All told, Chiu seemed settled in her interpretive approach as well as confident in the technical panache needed to make the work successful. 

Elli Choi is one of three American finalists.

Elli Choi was the other finalist I heard standing out in the preliminary phase, starting with an unusual repertoire choice: Hindemith's Sonata for Solo Violin, notable for firm, supple, long phrases. With Melivia Raharjo at the piano, Choi made a strong impression in Mozart's Sonata in C major, K. 303, with Raharjo in full sympathy, especially with a rousing Allegro molto launch of the final movement. 

Her display piece, H.W. Ernst's Variations on "The Last Rose of Summer," got a sculptural integrity I had not noticed in more sugary versions of these variations. She displayed a patience with the broad outlines of the material and details that prompted Ernst to describe the music as a "polyphonic etude." She seemed to have confidence in it as real music, not just something to show off in.

These participants join Yesong Sophie Lee, Lina Nakano, Aozhe Zhang, and Xunyue Zhang in the last two phases of the competition Wednesday through Saturday. 

[Performance photo by Denis Ryan Kelly Jr.]


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