Beethoven in classical proportions

{TABLE} Violin Sonata in D, K 306 ........... Mozart 4 Preludes .......................... Rachmaninov Suite italienne ..................... Stravinsky Kreutzer Sonata ..................... Beethoven {/TABLE} THE POLISH violinist Krzysztof Smietana and the Japanese pianist Noriko Ogawa are quite well known to Irish audiences, primarily through the advocacy of the Limerick Music Association. The duo's latest Dublin appearance was given within DCU's Larkin Theatre Concert Series, where the pianist, added four solo preludes by Rachmaninov to duo sonatas by Mozart and Beethoven and the arrangement for violin and piano of movements from, Stravinsky's Pulcinella.

The Larkin Theatre has an acoustic dry enough to tempt performers into unnecessary volume raising as a form of attempted compensation. Happily, Krzysztof Smietana avoided all such inclinations throughout the evening, but Noriko Ogawa attempted to project the Mozart sonata with too much force, playing loose with the composer's dynamic markings in the process.

The four Rachmaninov preludes appeared to suit her temperament rather better, but the dynamic exaggerations returned in the Stravinsky, undermining not only the more classically proportioned playing of the violinist but also her own nimble contribution through trespasses into overstatement.

The longest and greatest work on the programme, the Kreutzer Sonata of the second half, found both players at their best. Smietana, in particular, here offered music making that was steady and controlled, clear and articulate, capable of creating that most welcome of illusions, of allowing Beethoven's music to speak for itself.