Time Takes Another Piano Concert

David Helbock

Spielboden Dornbirn, Austria 20200408

When looking for distraction, the internet is full of it anyway. Those days JOWA plays everyday, Local H often, Mothership was on Sunday night, Ektomorf on #Napalmsofaseries, Rollins spins vinyls, Saturday it’s Forever Twenty Something party on FS1, and this night Tash presents new stuff. And at the Spielboden, a Musikladen Feldkirch vinyl tip performs over one hour on his grand piano.

David Helbock’s latest record was dedicated to film composer John Williams, most might be familiar with his work like “Home Alone” and “Jurassic Park” without knowing. This might relate to many score writers like Bacalov, Cosma or De Angelis as well. Like his idol, whose work he arranged, Helbock is renowned and celebrated in critics as well. Why, he demonstrates this evening, that he should have spend with Johanna Borchert as double bill.

The set of ten tracks starts with “E.T.” Atonal and quaky, Helbock’s hands are flying when pressing the keys. He performs a lot of different technics shifting in musical impact. With his hand he strikes over the strings or suppresses them. That might give e.g. the “Hedwig’s Theme” kind of a Rock sounding like Jethro Tull and in other cases the one of a Harpsichord. Between the tunes he tells that he has 20 minutes to walk to the location and is here with only four technicians.

He also adds an own composition “The Soul”, telling that music is the reason we have one. The soft attempts in “Moonlight” remind of Morricone’s Horror “Spasmo” giving goose bumps, while the main horror of the concert is “Jaws”. Williams once told Spielberg that he needs a better composer, to which the answer was “They are all dead.” That Williams took as a compliment and contrived “Schindler’s List”.

Close to the end, Helbock orchestrates the “Raiders March” with a lot of Rhythm and Blues. And this concludes, why for an extensive concert evening you need nothing but this guy and his grand piano.