# Katia and Marielle Labèque at Davies Symphony Hall, April 7, 2014

[SFSymphony](http://www.sfsymphony.org/Buy-Tickets/2013-2014/Katia-and-Marielle-Labeque.aspx) presents [Katia and Marielle Labèque](http://www.labeque.com/)  
2014-04-07  
[Davies Symphony Hall](http://www.sfsymphony.org)  
[201 Van Ness, San Francisco, CA](http://maps.google.com/maps?q=201+Van+Ness,+San+Francisco,+CA&hl=en)  
8:00 PM, Monday, April 7, 2014

[[2014-04-06|Back to the previous event]] ☸ [[:#section2014|Back to the 2014 yearbox]] ☸ [[:2014#april_events|Back to the 2014 event list!]] ☸ [[2014-04-08|On to the next event!]]


## Set One

[8:00 PM lights down, announcements]

### George Gershwin: Three Preludes for Two Pianos

George Gershwin (1898-1937): Three Preludes for Two Pianos, arranged for two pianos by Irwin Kostal (1911-1994)

01. [8:02 PM] Allegro ben ritmato e deciso
02. [8:03 PM] Andante con moto e poco rubato
03. [8:08 PM] Agitato  
[work ends 8:09 PM]

### Philip Glass: Four Movements for Two Pianos

[8:09 PM; musicians return]

Philip Glass (b.1937): Four Movements for Two Pianos

01. [8:10 PM] I
02. [8:16 PM] II
03. [8:21 PM] III
04. [8:28 PM] IV  
[set ends 8:35 PM]

## Set Two

[8:54 PM lights down, musicians enter]

### Leonard Bernstein: Music from _West Side Story_

Leonard Bernstein (1918-1990): Music from _West Side Story_ for Two Pianos and Percussion, arranged by Irwin Kostal (1911-1994)

[8:54 PM; waiting]  
[8:55 PM; musicians return; tuning]

01. [8:55 PM] Prologue
02. [8:59 PM] Jet Song
03. [9:01 PM] Something's Coming
04. [9:04 PM] Rock Blues
05. [9:05 PM] Mambo
06. [9:08 PM] Cha Cha
07. [9:09 PM] Maria
08. [9:13 PM] America
09. [9:16 PM] ? (unlisted bit)
10. [9:20 PM] I Feel Pretty
11. [9:22 PM] One Hand, One Heart
12. [9:23 PM] Tonight
13. [9:24 PM] Somewhere
14. [9:26 PM] Cool
15. [9:29 PM] A Boy Like That
16. [9:31 PM] I Have a Love
17. [9:34 PM] The Rumble
18. [9:36 PM] ? (unlisted bit)
19. [9:38 PM] Finale  
[9:39 PM; set ends]  
   
**Encore**
20. [9:41 PM] America (reprise)  
[9:43 PM; show ends; applause]  
[9:45 PM; ovations end]


## Performers

* [Gonzalo Grau](http://gonzalograu.com/): percussion;
* [Katia Labèque](http://www.labeque.com/): piano;
* [Marielle Labèque](http://www.labeque.com/): piano;
* Raphaël Séquinier: percussion;  
- with special guest (encore only) -
* ?: flamenco dance.

## Notes 

I was surprised at how brief the first set was, particularly the opening work from Gershwin, which was well done, but not long enough to stand up as more than an appetizer of sorts for tonight's musical meal. The Glass piece that followed was quite good -- even mom said she liked it, which is really saying something given her preference for the standard repertoire. I would have been happy to hear another short piece from the recent album, _Minimalist Dream House_ -- seems a little odd that they didn't think we'd want to hear more.

The second set, performed with percussive and SFX accompaniment was a hoot, though I'm not entirely convinced that the program listing matched the reduction as performed -- there were at least two times where it sounded to me like an extra segment had been inserted into the work. I'm also unconvinced over the merit of reducing a classic musical for a small-group performance. Heck, I was disappointed that last summer's orchestral iteration of _West Side Story_ lacked dancers.

The best I can say is that I really enjoyed the trading of lines between the two pianos, and it reminded me how rare it is to hear such duo recitals. I dunno if I'll sign up to see the LaBeque sisters again on their next visit -- probably depends on the repertoire offered -- but I'll definitely be looking for more piano duet shows!

Stephen Smoliar posted a luke-warm [[http://www.examiner.com/article/little-satisfaction-comes-from-the-lab-ques-effort-to-go-pops|review]] for the Examiner.

{{tag>music Katia_and_Marielle_Labèque Davies_Symphony_Hall Gonzalo_Grau Katia_Labèque Marielle_Labèque Raphaël_Séquinier}}

[[2014-04-06|Back to the previous event]] ☸ [[:#section2014|Back to the 2014 yearbox]] ☸ [[:2014#april_events|Back to the 2014 event list!]] ☸ [[2014-04-08|On to the next event!]]