MISHA AND CIPA DICHTER IN RECITAL

Two causes were well served by Misha and Cipa Dichter in Gindi Auditorium on Sunday afternoon. The University of Judaism benefited from the proceeds of their recital to the extent of $200,000 and the currently moribund art of two-piano playing was given a shot in the arm.

Two-piano teams generally can be divided into two classes: those who play on a small scale with meticulous attention to detail and those who aim at orchestral effects and allow for uninhibited razzle-dazzle.

The Dichters definitely belong in the latter classification. Each is a pianist of undeniable virtuoso qualifications. Misha plays on a somewhat broader and more dramatic scale than Cipa; she need ask for no quarter in any technical department and her light-fingered playing can be particularly attractive.

The team has contrived a flexible, relaxed ensemble. The Dichters attack precisely, can maintain some daring tempos without strain and counterbalance each other in the creation of varied orchestral colors. They are likewise indefatigable; the program summarized almost every direction of the literature and the players ended with as much verve and exhilaration as they began.

Mozart’s Sonata in D, K448, was at times a bit listless and perfunctory. But, once the players found their stride there were few dull moments. Saint-Saens’ Variations on a Theme of Beethoven blithered with precision and elegance. Liszt’s “Concerto Pathetique,” played in its final version as an unaccompanied piece for two pianos, seethed with Lisztian pyrotechnics and rhetoric.

Just as one began to think that the Dichters might be a little short on simple expressiveness, they played Debussy’s transcription of Schumann’s six Etudes in the Form of a Canon with touching lyricism.

The most successful effort in the way of orchestral simulation was in Leonard Bernstein’s arrangement of Copland’s “El Salon Mexico,” which became an all-out tour de force. And the Dichters’ special command of rhythmic abandon found sultry entertainment in Infante’s “Danzas Andaluzas.”