[NoHo Arts District, CA] – A NoHo Arts music review of Rach’s Got Rhythm by Masuda/Cheli Cello and Piano Duo at the Athena Foundation for the Arts concert series.
Rach’s Got Rhythm in North Hollywood. And by “Rach” we are referring to Sergei Rachmaninoff. The “Rhythm” was provided by the energetic and dynamic world-class musicians, Yoshika Masuda (cellist) and Dominic Cheli (pianist). This duo brought the house down with a romantically jazzy musical program and absolutely brilliant playing.
Right from the start, the atmosphere of the Community Auditorium was abuzz with anticipation. The first half of the program started with the great American composer, Amy Beach’s Romance, Op. 23., one of my personal favourites. Masuda and Cheli played this piece with such beauty and grace that only musicians of their caliber could do. Next came the Ukrainian/Russian composer, Nikolai Kapustin’s highly melodic Nearly Waltz for Cello and Piano, Opus 98. What a marvel of composition by Kapustin with really gorgeous execution by Masuda and Cheli.
The showstopper of the first half had to be George Gershwin’s ubiquitous Rhapsody in Blue. The performance was so overwhelming and electric that the cello and piano (arranged by Thierry Huillet) made me forget that this piece was written for a symphony orchestra. Bravo, gentlemen.
The second half of the program began with Erich Wolfgang Korngold’s Garden scene from Much Ado About Nothing, Opus 11. This piece was played with great gentleness and deep emotion, showing just what virtuosos such as Masuda and Cheli can pull from sheet music, delivering beauty directly to the hearts of the audience.
Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Cello Sonata in G minor, Opus 19, closed out the show with rapturous and emotional applause. Masuda and Cheli are magical beings. Their skills are undeniable, and their playing is sublime, but it was their unending energy that filled the auditorium with their beautiful and enchanting music.
I am so grateful to The Athena Foundation of the Arts for bringing this community such joy and passion in the guise of world-class musicians such as Yosika Masuda and Dominic Cheli.