First Concert performance in Ontonagon Theatre for the Performing Arts

It was with the greatest of pleasure that this reported had the opportunity to attend what may well be the first musical performance in the Memorial Building auditorium in a quarter century. Pianist Michael Furchert of Berlin, Germany appeared live on stage before an appreciative audience.

Sitting at a Yamaha Console piano which was placed just into the new extended proscenium, the music literally cascaded from the stage surrounding the audience with sound. Mr. Furchert has a smooth style of playing. His hands move easily over the keyboard and the sound flows. He is not a percussive pianist, yet his dynamic expression is full of contrasts which were more than augmented by the unique and very live acoustical propertied of the auditorium.

Furchert, born in what was East Germany, started his musical career at the age of 8. He is a product of a public German Music School and it was there that he received his training in classical forms and style. He graduated in 1988 and then spent much time studying improvisation. Now, at age 28, Michael has been touring the USA for the past 16 months. He had been invited to speak at public high schools, radio, and television where he is not only captivates his listeners with his music, but also tells of his early life under communism. He challenges people not to take their freedoms in this country for granted, but to treat it with respect and to take responsibility for their choices and decisions. He speaks freely of his personal religious faith and offers inspirational stories based on his life's experiences.

Furchert's concert features his own compositions. His compositional style would probably best be described as neo-romantic with the characteristics rolling accompaniments and melodies that seems to be more dialog than song. There is a touch of impressionism in his style as well, and most of the compositions featured at Sunday night's performance seemed to have a sort of sad triumph to them.

The recently redecorated auditorium is far from finished, but provided an elegant setting for the visiting artist from Germany. The room is very "alive" acoustically, and with little effort on the part of performers, the room "speaks" easily. Though Mr. Furchert was provided with a microphone, in retrospect, he could have been heard more easily without it. The room provides its own amplification. In fact, the best seat, sound-wise in the house was at the top of the auditorium in the balcony. We would expect that once a stage curtain and soft continental seating centered in the room is installed, the sound control will be even more impressive.

The artist, himself, commented on the auditorium... "Wonderful acoustics ... wonderful acoustics," and thanked the audience for the priviledge of being invited to perform the first concert in thirty years. In closing, Furchert said, "May the peace of God remain."

Harold S. Riter, Reporting