CHARLES BURKS AT MISSISSIPPI COLLEGE, OCTOBER 31, 2002

   Burks began appropriately with Bach's best known spook piece
(this was Halloween), the Toccata and Fugue in d minor (BWV 565).
His playing was a revelation - it was clean, maintained the beat
where it should be, and had a vitality reminiscent of E. Power Biggs.
After two pieces by Stanford, Arvo Paert's "My road has had its hours
of greatness" was next, with a repeated rhythm signifying a journey,
with its ups and downs, at times seeming minimalist. Mendelssohn's
Prelude and Fugue in d minor followed, and then Bach's Fantasy & Fugue
in c minor (BWV 537), which was given a sensitive treatment,
phrased consistently in the various voices in the fugue. After
that came Buxtehude's Passacaglia in d minor; here (as well as in the
Bach) the articulation matched the room well. Last was Widor's
Symphony No. 4, of which the Andante Cantabile is the best known
movement. This was played legato, in the manner of the times, with
extensive use of the swell pedal; it was a compelling performance.

   Burks is impressive by any measure. One might say he plays by ear;
not in the sense of making things up on the fly, but of listening to
his own playing and informing it by what he hears. This is the hallmark
of a consummate musician, who judges the final result by its musicality.
Though young, Burks is mature beyond his years.

                                                      - Glenn A. Gentry