Duo Sonare: When Beethoven meets the music of Hollywood - review

It’s a rare occurrence for the music of Beethoven to meet the music of Hollywood in the same performance. The exception is when performed by Duo Sonare, the collaboration of pianist, composer, and arranger, Dr. Tal Zilber; and the virtuoso violinist, Yonatan Selai, Their goals are to share not only beautiful music but also a program of divergent musical styles and how they resonate and enrich one another.

“Classical music is almost a ‘religion’ for us,” said Selai. “Therefore, we would not compromise either on quality or complexity of the repertoire in our quest to make classical music accessible for all.”

Zilber believes in brevity not only in his verbal explanations, with which he prefaced each of the short selections, but also in clarity in expressing his ideas. By doing so, Duo Sonare constructed a mindful and musically satisfying evening.

What does the program include?

THE PROGRAM opened with the music of Bach, the 18th-century composer, with the first movement of his Sonata No.1 to set the tone for the evening. Bach was a great improviser and influencer. Throughout the concert, Zilber pointed out how his music and techniques influenced later composers. 

As an example, he explained how the underlying motive of the Beatles song “Eleanor Rigby,” featured later on the program, is reminiscent of the fugal motive in Bach’s famous Toccata and Fugue in D Minor.

“Suddenly, the audience knows how to connect, and classical [music] is more accessible,” he explained. “Being open to classical as well as the music of today is important,” he pointed out. 

“It is also important to recognize and not discount music written for the movies, jazz, and popular genres as anything less worthy. They are part of our current musical experience and vocabulary and their place is vital.”

The central selection of Duo Sonare’s performance was Sonata No. 7 for violin and piano by Beethoven, and was marked with beauty, skill, and nuance by the two performers. In his short and clear preface.

Featured as an example of music spanning centuries was Praeludium and Allegro, a piece composed by the famous violinist Fritz Kreisler in 1905, who wrote it in the style of Pugnani, an 18th-century composer.

Selai brought a special connection to Ernest Bloch’s piece “Nigun” for violin and piano. His expression of the Jewish soul, in this song without words, brought this piece to a dramatic and musically satisfying level. 

Duo Sonare then offered the haunting music by John Williams from the movie Schindler’s List. This was an opportunity to appreciate drama on another level as well as showcase Zilber’s masterful, expressive arrangement, which left space for the improvisational skills of both artists. 

“Here we have the opportunity to improvise, which makes for an exciting experience,” posited violinist Selai. 

The evening closed with the music from The Godfather, followed by the fireworks of “Tango” by Argentine composer Astor Piazzolla.

This mysteriously named concert, Beethoven Meets Hollywood, turned out to be a most enjoyable affair. 

Duo Sonare will perform in Tel Aviv at the Bronfman Auditorium on June 18, and at the Rappaport Auditorium in Haifa, on June 25. Visit duosonare.com/#value for more information.