Review | Teenager Alma Deutscher shows she’s a rare talent as composer, conductor, pianist and violinist in City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong concert

Of the tiresome terms in classical music, “prodigy” has to be right up there. No one knows that better than the gifted all-rounder Alma Deutscher, who wrote her first piano sonata at the age of six, her first opera at the age of 10 and was hailed as a great talent before she turned 12. Now that she is 18, the British-born conductor, composer, violinist and pianist can finally ditch the “p” word label and move on as an artist. In a concert on February 4 with the City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong, Deutscher was omnipresent in multiple roles: as conductor of her own waltz, as piano and violin soloist, and as the composer of three of the four works in the programme. As entertaining as the evening was, the showcase of her versatility and her “early” compositions ultimately reaffirmed her prodigiousness instead of delivering on musical depth. Deutscher’s gift for composition and fine violin playing was evident right off the bat in her Concerto for Violin in G minor, born of themes that she wrote as a 7-year-old and composed (with revisions) from the tender age of 10. Led by their Armenian chief conductor Vahan Mardirossian, the CCOHK was hardly challenged by the concerto’s scope, but they accompanied the young soloist with attentive sensibility nonetheless. As sweet and as neat as Deutscher’s sound and violin playing was in the opening movement, her delivery was somewhat wooden and detached from the orchestra. Oddly, rather than turning to her collaborators and spurring them on, her animated facial expressions in the orchestra-only passages were reserved for the audience alone. Fiery elements were scarce in the opening movement, although Deutscher did begin to let go in her own very well-composed solo cadenza. Wedged neatly between the two quicker movements was a pretty Romanza. The violinist again opted for a well-behaved, velvety tone over passionate surges, but the lighthearted finale, full of jaunty rhythms, was clearly enjoyed by all. The CCOHK players then had their chance to shine alone in the finely crafted Sinfonia in C major by the prominent yet rarely heard 18th-century Viennese composer Marianna Martines. After taking keyboard lessons from Haydn, Martines gradually built up an international reputation as a composer. That, sadly, waned over time, her name becoming obscured by patriarchy, misogyny and biases in the classical music world. That said, this little gem of a symphony from 1770 was played with vigour by the CCOHK and well shaped by Mardirossian, with agile yet minimalist gestures. Why this young Hong Kong-born conductor chose to build his career in Seoul Vibrancy was the hallmark of both the work’s spirited Allegro movements. In the second one, concertmaster Amelia Chan ensured crisp virtuosic passages in the upper strings and led with assuredness in the exhilarating finale. While fine lyrical playing pervaded the introspective Andante, the intonation and phrasing in the horns was less unanimous. The concert’s extensive first half concluded with Deutscher returning to the stage with poise and pride to conduct her very own Waltz of the Sirens. Before the performance, Deutscher explained enthusiastically that the work drew inspiration from such “harsh” modern sounds as Austrian police sirens and the high-pitched beeping of closing subway doors that she heard as a 13-year-old when arriving in Vienna, her current place of residence. Those “ugly” sounds cleverly morphed into a string of waltzes that could easily have been penned by any member of the Strauss dynasty. Deutscher conducted with confidence and a verve that was well reflected in the orchestra’s triple-metre swing. In Deutscher’s idyllic sound world, albeit a slightly naive and sugar-coated one, “beautiful” sounds always trump dissonance. This was evident in her Concerto for Piano in E-flat major, completed when she was 12. Notwithstanding some of the strong influences and compositional techniques of Chopin or Rachmaninoff that pepper her concerto, Deutscher’s effort is astonishing for someone that young. As soloist, however, Deutscher never really rattled the rafters. The short-lived bursts of drama didn’t really engage, and her playing seemed to avoid tensions at all cost in the opening Allegro. Yearning sentiments in the Andante (a memoriam written days after her grandmother had died) were especially poignant in the oboe and clarinet solo interjections, and even though the rondo-variation finale had its rocky moments, it ended the concerto on a joyful note. Chinese violinist on the pressure of being a child prodigy, and slowing down Deutscher’s encore was more remarkable. Keen youngsters from the audience selected four random notes from a hat for her to improvise on. After a minute’s silence, Deutscher came up with an excellent piece of improvisation (in the style of a Chopin polonaise) that left listeners in awe. Her performance went down well with an audience that ranged in age from toddlers to retirees. Hers really is a rare talent. Just how sustainable the Alma Deutscher show will be is for her to decide. “Alma Deutscher + CCOHK”, Hong Kong City Hall, Concert Hall. Reviewed: February 4.