Russian pianist brings classical compositions to McKinney Theatre
The Department of Music presented a nice free treat in the McKinney Theatre, Thursday, Oct. 11, for students that enjoy songs composed by pianists.
Russian pianist Vladimir Khomyakov who is up for a doctoral candidacy at the University of Southern California performed several songs by other great composers.
A few of the songs he played were Wolfgang Amadeus “Mozart’s Sonata in B flat Major”, K281; M. Ravel’s “Pavane pour une infante défunte,” as well as both Scarlatti’s “Sonata in F Minor, L118” and “Sonata in E Major, L23.”
Khomyakov played the piano quite well, and almost all of the audience sat on the left side of the room where it seemed they could hear the music even better, although the music seemed loud enough to be heard on both sides of the room.
It seems Khomyakov likes multiple types of composers because some of the symphonies he played had what sounded like a fast beat to them, while others seemed to be much slower.
There were even some points in a few songs where the music had a soft feel to it, almost as if he was barely touching the keys on the piano.
When Khomyakov would finish a song, he would take a bow every time. It was during this time that the audience would applaud him for his wonderful performance.
After his breaks were finished and he returned back to the stage, the audience would welcome him back with even more applause.
While he took his breathers, whispers could be heard among the audience members speaking about what they liked about his performance.
It was not until towards the end of the recital that the audience made an expression as to how much they enjoyed his performance by clapping louder than ever, while some students chanted “woohoo” as Khomyakov took his final bow.
At that moment, it was clear that almost the entire audience enjoyed the recital, by appraising such great talent. It was seen by anyone in the audience that Khomyakov could not only play the piano well, but also elegantly, as showed by his hand movements throughout the performance.