Annette Colish

What started out as a routine recital by violinist Annette Colish Sunday night soon developed into an extraordinary display of musicianship and technique. Miss Colish, who is concertmistress of the Harvard-Radcliffe Orchestra and a pupil of Richard Burgin, opened her program with Corelli's Sonata No. 2. This she played quite stiffly; the notes were all there but she lacked the fire so necessary to lift the sonata above the realm of stodgy period pieces.

The same criticism holds for her playing of Beethoven's F major Romance. Although not representing the composer at his greatest, this piece can still be extremely effective in its contrasts between gentle flowing mclodics and sudden spurts of energy. A little more relaxation by Miss Colish, a little more give and take between the moods, would have been more appropriate.

But for the remainder of the program Miss Colish lost her inhibitions and played brilliantly. Five Romanian Folk Dance by Bartok, each a compact little bundle of emotion, received thoughtful, idiomatic performances. I especially liked Pe Loc, whose ceric and exceedingly difficult harmonics have doubtless been the undoing of many a lesser musician.

Even better was the Debussy Sonata No. 3. Playing like a professional, Miss Colish took the tricky rhythms in her stride and exhibited a rich, livid tone that had been absent earlier in the evening. Skillful modulation of phrasing and dynamics, ranging from sudden bold contrasts to the subtlest of nuances, helped to make the sonata a glowing and multicolored organism.