The 28-year-old pianist knows a thing or two about family dynamics. She's the eldest of seven young, classically trained siblings from England. (You may know her brother, cellist , whose career launched after performing at the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.) Perhaps that鈥檚 why she chose another musical family as the focus of her new album, Mendelssohn.
The recording is devoted to music by brother and sister and Mendelssohn 鈥� two wildly gifted prodigies who wrote exquisite music in early 19th century Germany. Along with its luminous melodies, Mendelssohn tells a story of sibling rivalry.
The dazzling album opener 鈥� the only orchestral work on the recording 鈥� is Felix Mendelssohn鈥檚 Piano Concerto No. 1, a piece that blends the rigor of , the elegance of and the raw energy of the emerging Romantics, like . Kanneh-Mason鈥檚 attentive performance, alongside the London Mozart Players and conductor Jonathan Bloxham, highlights all the details with muscle and insight. It鈥檚 worth noting that in February of 1838, Fanny herself played her brother鈥檚 concerto in what would be her only known public performance. She would always be overshadowed by Felix, who enjoyed a superstar career, writing brilliant, featherlight melodies, like those within his incidental music to Shakespeare鈥檚 A Midsummer Night鈥檚 Dream, two selections from which follow the concerto on Kanneh-Mason鈥檚 album.
She plays the intricate arrangement of the Scherzo at a moderate tempo, slower than many, but with plenty of glittering fairy dust. Let鈥檚 be real, Kanneh-Mason doesn鈥檛 have 鈥檚 . No one does. But unlike some, she doesn鈥檛 pound her way through; she lets the music float in mid-air. The Nocturne, in a rarely heard arrangement by the 19th century pianist-composer , unfolds serenely 鈥� like a warm blanket protecting Shakespeare鈥檚 lovers.
Fanny Mendelssohn and her brother were inseparable. That is until Felix and her father discouraged her dreams of a career in music. No such prejudice in the Kanneh-Mason family, where all are supported by doting parents. And Isata often performs with her own brother, Sheku.
Fanny wrote some 500 pieces of music, mostly for performances in private salons. Only a fraction of them were published, including the Notturno in G minor from 1838, where Kanneh-Mason illuminates a variety of moods within the gently swaying rhythm of a Venetian gondola song.
While Felix鈥檚 music takes up the bulk of this album, it is Fanny鈥檚 work, especially the enigmatic 鈥淓aster Sonata,鈥� that is the true treasure. The 23-minute piece is solidly built, with moments of febrile repose and turbulent spasms of brute strength. Fanny wrote the sonata in 1829, but it went missing until 1970, when scholars were convinced 鈥� unsurprisingly 鈥� that Felix was the author. Finally, in 2010, new evidence proved it to be Fanny鈥檚 work. And it is clear from Kanneh-Mason鈥檚 agile and passionate performance that the music holds a special place for her. The opening, she says, feels like spring, while the arresting final movement closes with delicately lit chords, moving like a processional into the ether.
Fanny Mendelssohn died of a stroke at age 41 in 1847. Felix was heartbroken, and died six months later at 38. They may have been the most naturally musical brother and sister in history. Thanks to Isata Kanneh-Mason, we have a sparkling album that documents some of their best work.
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