MUSIC REVIEW : Starker Returns to Pasadena

In the 31 years he has been appearing here, Janos Starker seems to draw a core audience more distinguished for its makeup than its size. Musicians--especially fellow cellists--attend Starker’s performances, and react happily. But the general public sometimes looks the other way when he comes to town.

It was perhaps not surprising, then, that the crowd that greeted the Hungarian-born Starker’s latest visit to Ambassador Auditorium Tuesday night was small in numbers but vociferous in its approbation. Such approbation is justified.

At 64, Starker remains a master musician in the prime of his abilities. This week, he brought a program of miniatures--nothing heroic, everything colorful--and delivered every little item with his customary stylishness, integrity and virtuosity.

Musically, that is. As a showman, one who might pay close attention to bringing his audience into the picture, Starker chooses to play the disinterested party. He does not mime, or grandstand, or try to look like the music, or lose himself in frenzy or reveries. In fact, more often than not, he looks bored--even when the aural evidence contradicts the visual.

Assisted by his longtime recital partner, pianist Shigeo Neriki, Starker played a six-part program beginning with Gregor Piatigorsky’s Haydn arrangement, the Divertimento--long a speciality of this artist.

He followed this with Beethoven’s Variations on “Ein Madchen oder Weibchen,” the Sonata by Debussy, Gaspar Cassado’s Suite for Unaccompanied Cello, a Falla group and Bartok’s Rumanian Dances. His single encore was David Popper’s Hungarian Rhapsody.

Carefully delineating each composer’s individuality and the contrasting moods of every separate piece, Starker seemed to use myriad colors in the service of clarification. Yet his performance, as always, dealt in no way with contrivance or artificiality-it simply flowed, naturally and convincingly.

Neriki’s solid but unobtrusive collaborations-he opened up a little more in the encore-served Starker and the composers well.