"In The Zone"
J. Epstein | Brooklyn | 02/09/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)
"First, this recording has everything that I love about this set of variations - power, glory, excitement, delicacy, exaltation, spirit, grace and energy. John Kamitsuka enters "the zone" when he plays this music and the recording does a great job of conveying just what it is that is special about this zone and how this music celebrates the human spirit. Sonically, it portrays a detailed, rich piano sound with a close perpective that puts you on the piano bench, without a ridiculous wall-to wall stereo spread or a distant wash of echo. This is to my taste.Kamitsuka, at times, plays "exuberant 88's" like Jerry Lee Lewis. To my ears, this is not brashness, but merely a device to establish one end of the spectrum Bach has mapped out as the traverse of the Goldberg Variations. He plays reflectively, somberly, establishing another end of the range. These two extremes act to encompass the variations of the human condition, as we ricochet between the exaltation, color, and energy of an explosion of orchids, and the finality, darkness, and unyielding depth of the grave on which they are placed.I took a physics class 20 years ago, presented by the chairman of the department at a prestigious University. It was a survey of modern concepts and we wrestled with ideas that are fundamental to the construction of our universe, understandings which define and expand our place as human beings within that universe. The professor, one of the finest teachers it has been my privelege to meet, was able to shed light on these Big Ideas, but the lesson that stayed with me most clearly from this experience was his expression of faith. He passed on his conviction that the coherence and simplicity of the basic laws of physics were solid, internally consistent proof of an organizing principle at work in the creation of the universe. The laws governing gravitational attraction as the speed of light is approached are hard to remember today, but his profession of faith has been impossible to forget.Bach's Goldberg Variations work in a similar way, as I hear them. The coherence and structure of these short pieces build upon each other to create a larger whole, a whole with great range and beauty of expression that stands as proof of the extent to which art can illuminate our everyday experience. But they go beyond that. Bach's achievement stands in awe of the organizing principle of our universe, it conveys respect and appreciation for something greater than our small selves, and illustrates and celebrates both the works of the divine spirit as well as the human spirit.John Kamitsuka is a very skilled pianist, but that is not the important point here. He has become able to express his soul and the universal soul through his playing and this disc is a document of this expression which all of us can connect to whether or not we are skilled pianists ourselves. He shares his "zone" with us, and as it turns out, his zone is the world, and everything in it, and more."
Track Listings (32) - Disc #1