David Helfgott ‘wasn’t bad’

Today at the Melbourne Recital Centre (which is an incredible venue, meticulously designed to yield the absolute best auditory experience) I heard David Helfgott play the piano.

In the grossly understated words of Helfgott himself, audible from my front row seat, ‘It wasn’t bad’.

I’ll say! Helfgott plays the piano as though it’s an extension of his soul, twin beings joyfully tumbling and flying round, dipping under the forest canopy when trickling rain grows heavier, then bursting forth with glee into emerging sunshine.

Uplifting was the experience of being in the presence of one so vastly gifted. A great day in the morning.

The ready stage, Melbourne Recital Centre.

Photo by Desanka Vukelich

Hoang Pham and David Helfgott, Melbourne Recital Centre, 15 February 2020.