The veteran US bass-baritone Thomas Hampson and Latvian accordionist Ksenija Sidorova presented highlights from Schubert's Winterreise at King's Place in London, but the evening was disappointing, lacking depth and substance. The concert paired Schubert's psychodrama with songs by Kurt Weill and a Piazzolla tango, but felt more like a vanity project than a serious musical exploration.
A Flawed Concept
The logic of replacing the piano with an accordion and framing Schubert with Weill and Piazzolla is understandable: this is street music polished for the salon. However, without programme notes, texts, or translations, style trumped substance. The performance of Winterreise offered only edited highlights: a heavy-footed Gute Nacht with the accordion's grimy chug, a folksy Frühlingstraum, and a mono-mood Lindenbaum. Sidorova's accordion lacked subtlety, while Hampson relied on diction to mask vocal limitations.
Second Half Highlights
After an unnecessary interval, Sidorova shone in two solos: Piazzolla's Chau Paris and Sergey Voytenko's Revelation, showcasing her artistry and the accordion's capabilities. Hampson then performed a sequence of Kurt Weill's songs, including Speak Low, It Never Was You, and Westwind, with showmanship but little edge. Mack the Knife had more bite, but overall the Weill set felt as edgy as Ralph Lauren. Encores of Sway and Night and Day pleased the crowd but reinforced a cruise-ship atmosphere.
