The Music Department presented a guest artist recital featuring violinist Liana Gourdija and pianist Efi Hackmey at the Goodwin Recital Hall Saturday evening.
The crowd gave the duo a standing ovation after their hour and a half performance. Both performers offered to sign copies of their self-titled CD, which was released Friday and sold after the show.
For both Gourdija and Hackmey, performing music has been a major part of their lives.
"I simply cannot live without it," said Gourdija, who has been playing the violin since she was 4.
She said playing an instrument is like a sport. No matter how skilled you may be, she said, it still takes daily practice and discipline to perform at your best.
Gourdija, born in Russia, has performed recitals throughout Russia, Europe and the United States, including at the Great Hall in Moscow, the Vatican for Pope John Paul II and the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, Ga.
She said her favorite composer is Bach, because of his complex simplicity that is so difficult to achieve.
Hackmey, a pianist of 27 years, said he finds himself in a trance when he is onstage.
"For me, performing for people is so much more emotional than playing the piano when I am alone," Hackmey said.
Hackmey, native of Israel, has performed concerts in Israel, Austria and Germany, as well as throughout the United States.
He said he admires the composer Brahms for his emotional depth and perfection of form.
The performance kicked off with "Sonata for Violin and Piano in Bb,K.378" by Mozart, followed by pieces by Carter, Paganini and Brahms.
Gourdija encouraged the audience to find a personal bond with the last piece and the darkest of the set, "Sonata for Violin and Piano in F, Op. 80."
"Use your fantasy, and try to connect with this piece," she said.
Gourdija said it was her favorite song of the night because of the special relationship she has with its topics.
"It deals with war and people suffering because of a political regime, like in Russia," Gourdija said.
Arnold and Irena Vainrub, Auburn residents from Russia, said they felt the historical emotion in the piece.
"It was nice to not just hear music, but also the history of our country in their performance," Arnold said.
Irena said the two were very good artists with brilliant continuations.
The Vainrubs said they were so impressed with the performance, they would buy a copy of the CD
"I enjoyed the performance way more than I thought I would," said Brittany Colemen, junior in psychology. "They were really great to learn from."
Colemen was one of several music appreciation students who received extra credit for attendance.
Colemen said the performance taught her to recognize the different composers and identify sounds in the music.
"I hope the students got to know some new pieces and recognize major differences in the styles," Hackmey said.
He said he hoped the students also witnessed the amount of emotion that goes into a performance recital, along with styles and techniques.
As for Gourdija, she said she wants her performances to inspire others to pick up and instrument or listen to music in a different way.
"I just hope our performance inspires people to be curious about music," Gourdija said.
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