Daniel De Bora October 2008

This review was written by Rhiannon Murphy and Ceri Jones

Rhiannon Murphy is a year 12 student at Monmouth Comprehensive School. She plays the piano and is studying music, biology, english literature and dance.  Ceri Jones is also a year 12 student at Monmouth Comprehensive; where she studies chemistry, biology, maths, music and psychology. She plays oboe, piano and tenor saxophone.

On the 9^th October Daniel De Borah played a stunning recital at Monmouth Blake Theatre as part of the Merlin Music Society season. Daniel De Borah is an extremely talented pianist from Melbourne, and only 27 years of age. He graduated with distinction from the Royal Academy of Music in 2006. 

Beethoven’s Rondo in G major started the concert beautifully. The soft beginning contrasted very effectively with the lively and energetic sections. What we appreciated most, as pianists was his phenomenal ability to handle the difficult trills. The strong ending promised for an excellent concert.  Prokofiev’s ‘War’ Sonata No. 8 showcases both the high drama and the emotional elements of the war during which it was written, through the contrast of the powerful attacking sections and mysterious melodic passages. We were both amazed at how easy he made such a complex piece look.  The Chopin of the second half started with his Polonaise-Fantaisie in A flat major; which de Borah played very thoughtfully.  The first of three Chopin Etudes – Etude No. 10 – had a very light hearted and pretty feel, and Daniel de Borah played it strongly. In the second etude, he showed off his amazing technical skill in the very busy passages. The last of the etudes, No. 5 had some very characteristic, lively passages, and ended beautifully; showing De Borah’s musicality as well as technical talent. Chopin’s Nocturne and Scherzo both had beautiful flowing melodies, and the dramatic ending of the scherzo was a powerful ending to an incredible concert, bringing rapturous applause, which led to a cheerful and pretty encore – an extract from Prokofiev’s Romeo and Juliet suite.  Overall, we thoroughly enjoyed the concert, and were in awe of Daniel De Borah’s impossibly quick moving, spider-like fingers; he is a truly gifted musician.