This concert marked the end of Perth's superb all-Mozart series from Austrian violinist Erich Höbarth and Scottish pianist Susan Tomes.
The repertoire – fairly obscure sonatas for piano and violin plus a handful of solo piano numbers – wasn't particularly sexy, which might explain the modest audience numbers. But each time I went I was blown away; this was musical partnership at its most convivial, intimate and intuitive.
Tomes and Höbarth unfurl their Mozart like easy conversation between old friends, shifting gracefully between erudite and gossipy, majestic and cheeky. Neither is afraid to speak their mind but nor do they shout each other down. They finish each others' sentences and pre-empt each others' jokes, contest and affirm and ponder every phrase in full. This programme contained the pithy first (K301) and bizarre last (K547) sonatas Mozart wrote for the combo, as well as the radiant A Major Sonata K526. Höbarth is Viennese to his core and that he lives this music daily shows in the way he plays it. His sound isn't polished or large, but tells its stories beguilingly.
Tomes is unflashy and unshakable, noble and brilliantly matter-of-fact. She played the solo Rondos in D major (K485) and A minor (K511) – the first breezy, the second sultry – and infused each with the spirit of the other. She sings her melodies comfortably and never overstates; with musicality this solid, she doesn't have to.
The series was well suited for serious minds, as indicated by Misha Donat's excellent if fairly dry programme notes.
Whether you grappled intellectually or simply sat back and revelled in the fine sound and warm camaraderie, the effect was golden.
HHHHH
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