Keeping to its tradition of organizing quality musical programs, local Alliance Françaises brought a great French pianist to the UAE's audiences for two evenings of recital. Given my schedule for the week, I figured it would be more convenient getting to the Abu Dhabi program at Novotel al Bustan on the island.
AF Abu Dhabi director (and good musician himself) Jean-Yves Carnino introduced the event and the pianist, Fanny Azzuro. The event was held in a ballroom that had been set up with a projector and camera to ensure that everyone got to see her technique live.
Azzuro's recital began strong with Rachmaninov's Variations on a Theme of Corelli -- a dynamic piece that also did well to exhibit her skill -- and continued to impress with other early 20th century works of diverse style and mood, especially Ravel's Mirrors. And with my passion for the genre, I naturally loved Kapustin's jazzy Variations Op 41 at the end.
