Daniel Grimwood, Stokesley Methodist Church

DANIEL Grimwood introduced his piano recital at Stokesley with Frescobaldi’s Toccata 1. A beautiful, wandering, tempo-changing work, it made a fascinating beginning to a piano recital which ranged far and wide in contrasting colour and tempi.

The Bach Italian Concerto (BWV 91) in baroque style with Vivaldi influences followed. The first movement has no tempo indication, and Grimwood performed it ‘cheerfully’, which suited it very nicely! The following ‘andante’ adopted a more stately if somewhat soporific pace. However, we were not tempted to slumber, as the third movement – ‘presto’ - again made us sit up as the music cascaded with a beautiful period feel.

Grimwood is a pianist of consummate elegance and refinement. He took time to explain his thinking about the music in the programme and this was certainly a very enriching experience, much appreciated by the audience.

The programme was a demanding one. In addition to the Frescobaldi Toccata and the "Italian Concerto", we were treated to Three Petrarch Sonnets by Liszt, a Venetian Gondola Song by Mendelssohn and 3 Barcarolles by Rubenstein, Faure and Chopin, all in the first part of the programme.

After the interval Grimwood, showing no signs of fatigue, did full justice to Schubert’s lovely Sonata in B flat major, D 960. Here again, the pianist explained some of the detail of the structure and expression of Schubert’s music, dealing with the existential issues of the point and nature of life and the imMutability of fate.

Composed in the last days of his brief life, Schubert’s great sonata was a beautiful experience enhanced by Grimwood’s attention to his audience, sharing his thoughts on the music and the composers. The whole concert was a tour de force.

Irene MacDonald