Hania Rani brought her short Australian tour to a close as part of the Adelaide Festival at the weekend.
Coming from a background having had an extensive education in classical music, Hania has gradually moved away from the conventional rigid structures of classical performance to experiment with electronics alongside acoustic instrumentation.With four successful solo albums released among other collaborations in the genre termed neoclassical, she's now lauded among her former inspirations and now peers, Nils Frahm and Olafur Arnalds.
From the outset, without actually announcing it, Hania makes it apparent this is not going to be a regular classical recital (1 March). She commences her solo performance primarily on synthesizers with 'Intro-Fall'.
Dwarfed by the abstract black and white visual projections, she plays with her back to the audience, building the music up into a pulsing wave of sound upon which the addition of her vocals becomes just another layer in the textured soundscape.
The driving ambience carries over into 'Oltre Terra' with Hania so immersed in her performance she slowly writhes before dancing jerkily as the music segues into the abstraction of '24.03'.
Although this opening portion of the concert is almost rendered as a suite with each piece of music flowing into the next leaving no time for applause, Hania makes a stylistic departure by moving away from playing music informed by electronica benchmarks Jean-Michel Jarre and Vangelis, and turning to the grand piano.
Her previously wordless vocals become distinct as she sings 'Dancing With Ghosts'. Without pausing she moves to the upright piano and continues with 'The Boat' before the clockwork lullaby 'Leaving', and this opening sequence comes to a close with the repetition of 'Buka' sounding like trance music rendered with live instrumentation.
There is a definite break in the performance allowing for applause as Hania steps up to the front of the stage and addresses the audience informing them that after 100 shows this is the last time she will be playing this specific set.
The performance resumes with the more accessible 'Don't Break My Heart', Hania delivering a subtle jazz-style vocal. The ambient PA hiss is an appropriate accompaniment as she plays 'Nostalgia' gently and quietly – it almost sounds like she is in the actual process of composition.
Flickering incandescent lamps around the upright piano are like candles in a storm as she employs a rapid playing technique on 'It Comes In Waves'.
As the set goes on there is less distinction between one song and the next, and you get lost in the feel, mood and driving hypnotic beats that hook you and don't let you go. It's surprising that no one gets out of their seats to dance.
As the set comes to an ultimate conclusion after nearly two hours, Hania's choice of the final song and encore is 'Awful Lot', an unreleased song that was possibly the most simple and direct to be performed all evening.
It was a grateful audience who gave Hania a standing ovation; we can only hope it is not too long before we have the opportunity to show her our appreciation again.
