I particularly enjoyed the «Nocturne n.º 2» (op. 6), played first, where Mrs. Verjee masterfully conveyed the studied feeling of improvisational insecurity that is required to portray this piece as if it were being composed on the go. Mrs. Verjee achieved this with timing variations in the right hand which, over a constant, secure left hand, give the sensation of shyly entering into the musical dialogue that is this piece.
Another standout was the piece played right after: Brahms’s «Intermezzo in E n.º4» from the «Fantasies», op. 116. Christ Church is slowly turning me into a Brahms devotee. Including today, Brahms has been played five times this year, and each time I find myself engrossed in his compositional genius. Mrs. Verjee saved for his pieces her softest, most pensive of moods, and represented this piece with passionate stillness, where the tumultuousness of her reputation hid, boiling, behind her soft touch.
The final piece, Liszt’s transcription of Schumann’s «Widmung» (S. 556), was an exuberant release from the romantic tension accrued during this 50-minute affair. Adorning the lyrical voice with long arpeggios, this piece powerfully showcased Mrs. Verjee’s speed and control: where other pianists tend to equate fast with loud, here we witnessed speedy virtuosity without excessive hammering — a level fitting of the love decoration that is the «Widmung».