At ninety years young, Michigan’s eminent pianist and pedagogue, Natalie Matovinovic, left early to drive from Ann Arbor to a concert in Commerce Township. Having first heard Pauline Martin perform Rachmaninov’s Cello Sonata with cellist Robert deMaine at the 2006 Michigan Music Teachers Association Conference, Natalie was not about to miss an opportunity to hear Pauline perform a solo recital.
“I don’t drive on the expressways, and the streets are full of pot-holes!” All worth the trouble, though, an elated Natalie assured Pauline following Steinway Gallery of Detroit’s presentation of Michigan’s newest Steinway Artist in recital on October 28, 2012. From her masterful rendition of Chopin’s Ballade in f minor with its “impossible coda – absolutely marvelous” to the timelessly beautiful Sonata D960 in B-flat by Schubert, Ravel’s Sonatine and Malcolm Arnold’s charming “Homage to the Queen” Suite (which had earned this pianist a first-round Grammy nomination), it was a concert to remember.
Pauline honored her host, Tim Hoy, with her choice of encore: Debussy’s “Claire de Lune”. Wrote one audience member, “This was the most beautiful Claire de Lune I have ever heard!”
The audience lingered to enjoy a wine and cheese reception hosted by Steinway Gallery in celebration of the new Steinway Artist.
Titled “A Melodic Intervention”, the event had truly delivered on the promise to “transport us from our busy lives.”
I.D.M.