Ersta Kyrkan, Stockholm
DAN FRANKLIN SMITH’S FANTASTIC CONCERT AT ERSTA
Many people gathered to listen to Dan Franklin Smith’s piano concert in Ersta Church on Sunday, May 17, 2015. The program entitled La Vida Iberiana included music that many of us were hearing for the first time — but hopefully not the last.
The concert began with Federico Mompou’s Cancion y Danza No. 6, which introduced the character of the concert with its Spanish melancholy and rhythmic precision. From the very first note Smith picked up and interpreted this character in the best way imaginable. This beginning generated a wide-ranging program that included tango, jazz, folk music and even impressionistic tones.
After the intermission Mr. Smith presented two pieces by the Swedish composer Dag Lundin – “Ballad of the Little Tree” and “South-Spanish Souvenir,” pieces that balanced the Swedish with the South. He then guided us on through the exotic Alma Brasileira by Heitor Villa-Lobos, Astor Piazzolla’s tango Sin Rumbo and others. The concert closed with André Previn’s exciting “Three South American Sketches.”
Here as well as throughout the concert Smith displayed a warmly sensitive and personal connection to the music that was always supported by his technical brilliance. Enthusiastic appreciation from the audience assured an encore from Mr. Smith that I hope to hear many more times – preferably performed by Dan Franklin Smith.
Patrik Sandin, Music Director at Ersta Kyrkan, Stockholm