Pianist Aizawa’s Debut Proves Impressive Yet Inconclusive

The temporary but long-term closing of Royce Hall and the apparently permanent shutdown of Ambassador Auditorium have left a void: Recital series, once a staple of our musical activity, have slowed down significantly.

Raitt Recital Hall, a handsome and comfortable 100-seat concert space at Pepperdine University in Malibu, gives comfort to displaced music lovers several times a year. When the series closed its 1995-96 season Sunday afternoon, such comfort took the form of an impressive but inconclusive debut by 21-year-old pianist Rieko Aizawa.

Aizawa, a student of Peter Serkin at the Juilliard School, gave evidence of a large and comprehensive musical talent in her Bach-Schubert-Takemitsu-Schumann program. She faced the technical and musical complexities of this repertory resourcefully and delivered performances clearly on the way to individuality.

Perhaps it was the Steinway she played upon that failed to provide all the characterizations and tone colors waiting in the “Italian” Concerto; the G-major Sonata, D. 894; Takemitsu’s “Rain Tree Sketch II” (1994); and “Kreisleriana.” More interesting than a student, less musically compelling than an already launched artist, Aizawa still seems to be finding herself.

Best was the Schumann suite, which demonstrated strong feelings and an impassioned delivery, though without all the telling emotional details. Schubert’s most seraphic sonata held the listener at attention, but revealed no new insights.

Takemitsu’s brief neo-Impressionistic piece showed a healthy poetic response from the pianist, but the “Italian” Concerto sounded mostly dutiful. Aizawa’s encore was Schubert’s A-flat “Moment Musical.”