HARDWICK – The Craftsbury Chamber Players gave its first concert of the summer season in Hardwick at the Town House last Thursday evening, featuring significant works by Haydn and Brahms as well as a less known English composer, Bowen, scored for four, three and two musicians respectively.
The “Quartet Op. 76 No. 2 in D Minor,” entitled “Quinten,” was written later in Hayden’s life, 1797, when he was freer in his musical experiments, it has been said to be influenced by his much younger compatriot, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791). The work features a reversal of the order of effects. With Amy Sims and Brooke Quiggins on violins, Kenji Bunch on viola and Francis Rowell on cello, this quartet started right off with an engaging melody, a little darkly shaded in the minor key at first but switching quickly into a lighter ambiance, and then back again several times throughout this initial allegro movement. Haydn’s music is very precise and clear, full of light and the four players brought a complementary precision to this performance.
The second section, Andante di molto piutorto allegretto, had a pleasant theme with a dignified rhythm, in a slower tempo, along with sophisticated variations not necessarily predictable. The Menueto, Allegro ma non troppo had dance-like rhythms with some insistent short strokes on all the strings, while the fourth movement, Vivace Assai was softer and more delicate, having interesting texture in the interplay of the instruments.
York Bowen (1894-1961) was a precocious student at the Royal Academy of Music in London and his “Sonata in c minor, Op. 18” for viola and piano, composed in 1905, was an attempt to give the viola more of a repertoire, which with the exception of Berlioz’s “Harold in Italy” and a few other works it never received much in the 19th century. Kenji Bunch on viola and Monica Ohuchi on piano gave a very sympathetic rendition of the three parts of this piece.
The Allegro moderato began in the lower range of the viola and developed a great flowing momentum in the melody, which explored the romantic richness of color and feeling the viola is capable of, here with a masterful interplay of the piano and viola in their sensitive interpretation. The second section, Poco lento cantabile, had a quite lovely tune and appropriately to the cantabile indication, did have a singing voice like a folk song. The expressive, darker shades of the viola, with nuanced restrained, juxtaposed with the lighter texture of the piano, made this a well integrated performance. The Finale: Presto, was very lively in its much faster tempo, with jaunty, dance-like rhythms, building towards the swirling climax of the theme, all harmoniously scored.
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897) completed his “Trio No. 2 in C Major, Op. 87” between 1880-82, which was played by Amy Sims on viola, Frances Rowell on cello and Monica Ohuchi on piano. Brahms lived in the shadow of Beethoven, but curiously he never went as far as the beyond-the-beyond experiments of Beethoven’s late piano sonatas and quartets. But he does have an intriguing beginning to this trio like his mentor before developing the gorgeous melody of the initial Allegro moderato of the first movement. The combination of instruments unfolds in layers of sound and rhythms, with each player being featured in turn. The Andante con moto had a slower pace, again with solo passages to methodically enhance the themes, with echoing resonances from the other instruments. The Scherzo had a particularly beautiful tune with a joyous feeling, very much from the heart. There were truly sublime moments, with repeated dramatic glissandos down the keyboard of the piano. The final Allegro glocoso continued this fast momentum with another great melody having brilliant tonality, in which the three musicians demonstrated consummate coordination in their playing, earning them a well deserved standing ovation.
The next concert by the Craftsbury Chamber Players will be in Hardwick on Thursday, July 17 and Wednesday, July 16, in Burlington at the Elley-Long Music Center, and has pieces by Chausson, Kurtag, Bunch and d’Indy on the program. For more information call (802) 586-0616 or go online at [email protected].
David K. Rodgers
David K. Rodgers is a writer, mason and card carrying dilettante, who dabbles and babbles in art. He has lived in East Craftsbury for the past 40 years.
