KARACHI, Dec 9: Though foreign classical musicians perform off and on in Karachi, thanks largely to the efforts of European consulates and cultural centres, it is rare that a local musician well-versed in the western classical arts gets to put on a display of his or her prowess.

And there’s good chance that if a local artiste is indeed performing, it’ll be young Usman Anees. The talented pianist once again put on a display of his considerable talent by performing selections from some of classical music’s most renowned masters at the residence of German Consul General Hans-Joachim Kiderlen on Sunday evening.

The solo recital by Mr Anees on the pianoforte featured the work of four giants of the western classical world: J.S. Bach, Felix Mendelssohn, Franz Liszt and Peter Tchaikovsky.

The pianist opened the evening’s recital with German Baroque-era composer Bach’s Das Wohltemperierte Klavier, or The Well-Tempered Clavier Part I, with the preludes and fugues no four, five and six.

Each voice of the fugues was distinct and even the novice ear (like this reporter’s) could spot the change in temperament. Perhaps that is the most manifest example of a consummate artiste’s touch; the subtle mastery over pitch and dynamics coming across flawlessly. The fugues were particularly resplendent, in a typically Baroque fashion, reflecting both the genius of the composer and the skill of the performer.

Bach was followed by another German, with the familiar strains of Mendelssohn’s famous Spring Song, taken from Opus no 62 of the Lieder Ohne Worte, or Songs Withoud Words, echoing in the small chamber that played host to the performance. The composer aptly named this, perhaps the crowning glory of his canon, as Anees’s fingers calmly pounded the keys of the piano, delivering an absolutely magnificent instrumental rendition.

As a matter of fact, quite a few of the audience members were stunned with the speed, accuracy and panache of Anees, as hardly an out-of-tune note was heard during the performance, along with the fact that he held his own without the aid of orchestral accompaniment (though an orchestral performance would be more than welcome in the city). With such skill, surely greater things await the young musician, as he has also begun to compose his own music.

Hungarian Rhapsody by Liszt and selections from Russian Romantic composer Tchaikovsky’s The Seasons, Opus 37b, were also performed.—QAM