On Sunday, June 28, virtuoso violinist Itamar Zorman gave a live performance of several violin and piano works by Grażyna Bacewicz. The concert was live-streamed on Facebook and interspersed with a conversation between Maestro Zorman and PMC director Marek Zebrowski.
Ably assisted by pianist Liza Stepanova, Zorman was heard in Bacewicz’s Slavonic Dance, Melody, Oberek, and Witraż [Stained-glass window]. The performance was as outstanding as it was heartfelt—Zorman’s singing tone shone in the introduction to the Slavonic Dance and sparkled throughout the entire length of the Melody. His fiery temperament and virtuosity were on full display in the whirlwind Oberek and in the lively sections of the Slavonic Dance, where judicious rubato and Zorman’s instinctive sense of style added up to a convincing and highly satisfying interpretation.
Bacewicz’s early work, the atmospheric Witraż (1932), received a sensitive reading that provided a pensive close for this well-conceived broadcast. This was the third in a series of “Hidden Gems” virtual concerts, hosted by Itamar Zorman. The first two were on the subjects of Fritz Kreisler and Eugène Ysaÿe.
To re-watch this exciting Bacewicz program, visit Zorman’s Facebook page, where you will also find the other “Hidden Gems” programs as well as more performances by this talented young violinist.