Dani Bocsi, with Gabor Szarvas, Plays Two Recitals
My teaching load at Oberlin is 90% Conservatory performance majors and the associated classes, but I often have room for one or two students who are not formally enrolled in the Con. They major in an academic in the College and take half-hour classical guitar lessons as an elective. It is incredibly uncommon, but not unheard of, for these students to give recitals. This year, my non-major, Dani Bocsi played not one, but TWO recitals. This burst of musical activity turned the heads of my studio majors and was a delightful addition to our busy calendar of guitar events. And he played beautifully.
Dani is a biomedical engineering major who is active on the College’s swim team. He started guitar very young, as a student in the Suzuki method. His first concert this semester was a guitar duo presentation in which his former teacher, the Hungarian guitarist Gabor Szarvas, came out to join him from Madison, WI, their home town. They’d played their duo program several times already, so it was well-seasoned. Gabor is a delightful musician whose joy in playing with his one-time pupil was obvious.
Dani Bocsi and Gabor Szarvas on the Fairchild Chapel stage.
The program they offered included both duets and solos, with each guitarist taking the spotlight in turn. The musical selections all hewed Spanish, as a theme, and began with flamenco-inspired duets by Hartog. The duo’s audience turnout was excellent.
Gabor played a lovely set by del Rey, followed by Dani’s solo set, a mix of pieces by Vinas, Brouwer and Albeniz. (The full program is at the end of the post). At the program’s conclusion, after a mixed set of duos that concluded with a rousing version of Sanz’s Canarios, the audience responded with loud approval. It was the first time an Oberlin student had effectively arranged for a guest artist in our program, and it was a wonderful success.
Dani’s second recital, a solo show this time, was a mere two weeks later. It was also presented in Fairchild Chapel.
Dani Bosci plays solo in Fairchild Chapel.
Dani programmed a different set of solo works for this show, starting with a short work of Mertz and following with a pair of Venezuelan waltzes by Lauro.
He followed these with a pair of Tarrega pieces and the iconic first Prelude of Villa Lobos.
Dani finished his program with pieces by Brouwer and Dyens. His reading of Tango en Skäi brough the audience to their feet. Dani’s playing is extremely well-controlled. His tone is beautiful and his projection excellent, and he never misses a note or even buzzes. He precedes his performance sets with clearly spoken comments about the pieces. In short, he plays like a pro. Bravo, Dani, and thank you for sharing your music, and for bringing Gabor to Oberlin as well!
