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Vincent Mak

Tango!

City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong

Sha Tin Town Hall Auditorium

Reviewed: January 13

A full  Astor Piazzolla  programme  by the City Chamber Orchestra Hong Kong (CCOHK) kept  winter  at bay at  Sha Tin Town Hall last Saturday.

Bandoneonist Daniel Binelli  and pianist Polly Ferman  gave such superb renderings of the Argentine master's tango-inspired compositions that the audience rewarded them with a standing ovation. Engaging support by  the  CCOHK under the baton  of German Augusto Gutierrez  made the performance even  more memorable.

Despite his mane of white  hair and avuncular appearance, Binelli (who used to perform  with Piazzolla)  poured youthfully fervid strains  from his bandoneon  to  a rapt audience. Every phrase from the Argentine virtuoso burned with emotion, be it the forlorn dance in the bandoneon concerto's slow movement, the rhapsodic opening of Fracanapa, or the soaring main theme of Adios Noninos. Even a long  single note in Milonga del Angel had life breathed into it by  Binelli's playing.

Binelli and Ferman are long-time musical partners and their rapport showed in the tangos arranged for bandoneon, piano and strings.  Ferman's powerful, precise attack carried a jazzy accent that complemented Binelli marvellously - for example, in  the build-up of tension in Buenos Aires Hora O.

The orchestra played their heart out too, and all jammed  with contrapuntal brilliance, fine tone-blending and rhythmic excitement  in Libertango. Ferman and the strings, with their supple, expressive sound, were equally heartfelt in the  Invierno Porteno and Verano Porteno.

Colombian-born Gutierrez displayed an instinctive grasp  of Piazzolla's idioms, and the players responded sensitively to his direction. Even when without the star soloists, as in the opener Tangazo,  the rollicking strings and finely phrased wind solos contributed to the concert's immense enjoyment value.



Tango!