Oberon's Grove

Great Performers: Takács Quartet

Above: the Takács Quartet; photo by Ellen Appel

Thursday March 19th, 2015 - For this, the first of our subscription concerts in the Great Performers at Lincoln Center series, the Takács Quartet performed Haydn and Debussy, and were joined by pianist Joyce Yang for Anton Dvořák’s popular Piano Quintet in A major.

Haydn’s “Emperor" quartet is instantly familiar as it contains a series of variations on his tune for the hymn, "Gott erhalte Franz den Kaiser"” (God Save the Emperor Franz) composed in 1797. Haydn's hymn eventually became the national anthem of Austria and - as “Deutschland über Alles” - that of Germany as well (which, despite its use by the Nazis, it remains the to this day).  For me, I recall singing it boldly as a youth in church in its incarnation as the Methodist hymn "Glorious things of thee are spoken, Zion city of our God." It is said to be the first hymn rendered into English.

Thus I found myself singing along silently with the Takács Quartet tonight. They played the entire quartet beautifully and impressively, though I found the music almost too pleasant and longed for something more emotionally involving.

This came soon enough with the Debussy; his G-minor quartet, Op. 10 which dates from 1893 and is his sole composition for string quartet. This work springs from its first theme which recurs in various guises throughout the four movements. Here the Takács players delved into the poetic depths of expression, with deeply felt playing and an enriching blend of voices. In the Scherzo the Quartet displayed a nimble rhythmic pulse, and soon after they had us basking in the glow of the andantino, with its achingly lovely melody taken up by the violin. For the ending of this movement, Debussy marked: '...to be played as quietly as possible".

The finale then rolls forward, marvelously played tonight, though I found myself wanting to linger in the sweet sorrow of the andantino: I know I'll be listening to Pelléas et Mélisande in the coming days.

Above: pianist Joyce Yang; photo by K T Kim

The evening reached its grand conclusion with the melody-filled Piano Quintet in A major, Op. 81 by Anton Dvorák. Pianist Joyce Yang joined the Takács Quartet for a rich and deeply satisfying performance which opened with movingly resonant cello theme played by the Quartet's excellent András Féjer. 

In the quintet's second movement, Andante con moto, Ms. Yang's rhapsodic playing achieved a splendid splendid blend with the strings; indeed, throughout the Dvorák, the beauteous pianist displayed remarkable finesse and a sense of dynamic control which constantly seduced the ear.

The concluding allegro swept forward, all the players vividly attuned to the composer's sense of exuberance. The packed house erupted in a vociferous ovation the moment the music stopped and the players were called back several times to bask in the well-deserved applause.

Tonight's Artists:

Edward Dusinberre, violin

Károly Schranz, violin

Geraldine Walther, viola

András Fejér, cello

Joyce Yang, piano

The Repertoire:

Haydn: String Quartet in C major, Op. 76, No. 3 (“Emperor”)

Debussy: String Quartet in G minor

Dvořák: Piano Quintet in A major

TAKE Dance Will Present THERE AND HERE

Celebrating their tenth anniversary season, TAKE Dance presents a evening-length new work by Takehiro Ueyama entitled THERE AND HERE. The performances take place March 26th - 28th, 2015 at The Schimmel Center. Here are the production details:

Tickets may be purchased here.

I dropped in at a studio rehearsal for THERE AND HERE and took a few snapshots; some of my favorite dance-folks in Gotham are taking part, including Take's company members and special guests Graham luminary Miki Orihara, Nana Tsuda Misko, and former Paul Taylor Dance Company members Amy Young and Orion Duckstein.

Kile Hotchkiss

Gina Ianni & Kile Hotchkiss

Take, Kile

Gina Ianni

Having a laugh: Amy Young, Miki Orihara, Nana Tsuda Misko

Brynt Beitman

John Eirich

Trying out a new move

Amy Young...today I met Amy's lovely little daughter, Sadie Kleinendorst.

Bella Hristova @ Merkin Hall

Above: Bella Hristova; photo by Lisa Marie Mazzucco

Monday March 16th, 2015 - I've gotten to know something of the lovely young Bulgarian violinist Bella Hristova's artistry thru her appearances with Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. Tonight at Merkin Hall, under the auspices of Young Concert Artists, she presented a recital of solo works by Bach, Ysaÿe, and Joan Tower (world premiere) and then joined the redoubtable pianist Joseph Kalichstein for a performance of the Beethoven sonata #10 in G-major.

Gowned in deep violet, Ms. Hristova's opening Bach (the Partita No. 1 in B minor, BMW 1002) displayed both her mellow, redolent tone and the amazing deftness of her virtuosic coloratura technique. 

Eugene Ysaÿe's Sonata No. 4 in E Minor (1923) is one of a set of six solo sonatas that the composer created for specific violinist/friends; a fabulous violinist himself, Ysaÿe placed countless technical challenges in these works, which can be successfully played only by accomplished virtuosos. As music, they are perhaps more impressive than actually enjoyable to hear; one admires the player's leaping of the various hurdles but not much spiritual satisfaction can be derived, at least not for me.

The 4th sonata, known as the Kreisler, was imbued with both passion and perfume by Ms. Hristova tonight. She succeeded in making musical sense out of the piece, though one still had a feeling of the composer throwing  "everything but the kitchen sink" at the soloist in the taxing final movement. 

Similarly demanding but somehow far more congenial was the wildly successful world premiere of Joan Tower's Second String Force. Ms. Tower is among my favorites on the contemporary composing scene; to date everything I have heard by her has been both finely crafted and truly enjoyable - something you can't honestly say about many of the new works that come along these days.

Ms. Hristova has commissioned six works from today's composers, and if the other five are half as satisfying as Ms. Tower's creation, they will be truly worthwhile.  Opening with a pensive, almost hesitant feeling, the violinist is soon sent scurrying in passages featuring a plentitude of trills. At one moment soaring into an upward drone, Ms. Hristova then spirals downward into a super-sustained  trill and on to a swirling motif; she trills up and down the range before again sailing to the stratosphere with a high shimmer. A brief soulful interlude is followed by buzzing scalework, increasing in volume. Arpeggios glisten off her strings, culminating in a poignant rising theme. 

The audience embraced the work heartily, and both soloist and composer were re-called for extra bows as cheers rang out. During the interval we had a chance to congratulate Ms. Tower, whose "Bach" evening at The Miller Theatre last year we had so enjoyed.   

The Steinway was then rolled out, and pianist Joseph Kalichstein joined Ms. Hristova for the Beethoven sonata for piano and violin, No. 10 in G-major, Opus 96. The violinist was at her most engaging here, deeply expressive in the flowing adagio. She and Mr. Kalichstein struck up an admirable rapport, and though once in a while it seemed the piano was overwhelming the violin a bit, one needed to recall that this sonata is for "pianoforte with violin accompaniment" and thus the keyboard's prominence was perfectly understandable. The two musicians displayed their obvious affection for the music in a richly 'sung' and savorable performance. Persistent applause called them out again and again, but they wisely eschewed the option of an encore, leaving us with the Beethoven resonating in our souls.

Escher String Quartet @ CMS

Above: The Escher String Quartet: Dane Johansen, Pierre Lapointe, Aaron Boyd, and Adam Barnett-Hart; photo by Laura Rose

Sunday March 15th, 2015 - Continuing their Winter Festival, Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center today presented the Escher String Quartet in three works. Guest soprano Jennifer Zetlan joined the Quartet for the Lyric Suite of Alban Berg; the concert opened with Schubert and concluded with Sibelius, followed by a Gershwin encore which the audience demanded from Quartet.

In Schubert's 'Rosamunde' quartet, the gentlemen of the Escher gave us a perfect example of music as consolation: such a feeling of longing in their melodious turns of phrase. Their sound has an organic quality, yet as each voice takes passing prominence, their individuality becomes amply evident. Of particular appeal is the refined, emotive elegance of Adam Barnett-Hart's violin; his masterful dynamic control - down to a whispered shimmer - gave me the chills at several points during the 'Rosamunde'. Clarity and tonal polish are the hallmarks of his colleagues: Aaron Boyd (violin), Pierre Lapointe (viola) and Dane Johansen (cello). 

Each movement of the Schubert's A-minor work begins softly, and it is this that draws the listener into an intensely personal experience with the music. As the players move from one theme to another, the breadth of Schubert's melodic imagination constantly reveals itself. In the courtly dance of the quartet's finale, the four musicians again revel in their piano/pianissimo subtleties, until with two brisk chords the dance is ended. 

A secret romance seems to have been the inspiration for Alban Berg's Lyric Suite, which sounded every bit as fresh and original tonight as if it had been written yesterday. Berg, on a visit to Prague in 1925, fell in love with a married woman, Hanna Fuchs-Robettin. Berg, who was also married, kept his passionate feelings for the lady a secret but the love and desire he felt for her seemed to have been an on-going effect on his creative life. In reading about their relationship, it's unclear whether it was ever consummated or whether is was more a one-sided infatuation. Yet Madame Fuchs-Robettin is sometimes referred to as Berg's mistress. So an air of mystery remains.

Whatever the case may be, the Escher Quartet and Jennifer Zetlan gave such a compelling performance of the Suite that the audience erupted in cheers, and a standing ovation commenced the moment they finished the piece. Angular as much of the music seems, the Escher musicians managed to find elusive veins of melody everywhere, drawing the listener deeper and deeper into the mystery. The insectuous sounds of the Allegro misterioso, the subtle shadings of the Adagio appassionato, the icy shivers of the Presto delirando - Tenebroso, and the plucked introduction of the concluding, marked Largo desolato (which gives way to a soaring violin line) are among the numerous elements which make the Lyric Suite an enduring masterwork. 

Ms. Zetlan (above), who in December 2014 made a striking vocal effect performing the Ligeti REQUIEM with the American Symphony Orchestra and is soon to appear with Gotham Chamber Opera in THE TEMPEST SONGBOOK, brought an interesting mixture of girlish lyricism and dramatic verbal edge to the concluding vocal movement of the Berg.

Just last month, we had the opportunity to hear Jean Sibelius's String Quartet in D minor, Voces intimae, Op. 56, performed by members of the New York Philharmonic. How wonderful to encounter it again so soon, and played so expressively as it was this evening by the Escher. Pensive and often melancholy of mood, for four movements this quartet maintains an Autumnal feeling. And then in the concluding Rondo, the players engage in an amazing race to the finish. Swept along, the audience went wild at the end.

The encore, a setting of Gershwin's Lullabye, was gorgeously played; and yet it seemed a bit too drawn out for an encore, and musically it didn't quite fit in after the intensity of the Berg and the whirlwind finale of the Sibelius. Nevertheless, the playing of it was superb.

Today's Participating Artists:

Escher String Quartet (Adam Barnett-Hart, violin; Aaron Boyd, violin; Pierre Lapointe, viola; Dane Johansen, cello)

Jennifer Zetlan, soprano

The Repertory:

• Schubert Quartet in A minor for Strings, D. 804, Op. 29, No. 1, “Rosamunde” (1824)
• Berg Lyric Suite for String Quartet (1925-26)
• Sibelius Quartet in D minor for Strings, Op. 56, “Voces intimae” (1909)

Paul Taylor @ Lincoln Center 2015 #2

Above: Parisa Khobdeh and Michael Trusnovec in EVENTIDE; photo by Paul B Goode

Saturday March 14th, 2015 matinee - The second of four performances by Paul Taylor's American Modern Dance that I'll be seeing during their 2015 Lincoln Center season. The program this afternoon was both appealing and meaningful: three Taylor masterworks, vastly different in both music and atmosphere, and all danced with extraordinary flair and commitment by the resplendent artists of the master's Company. 

CLOVEN KINGDOM, with its bizarre mingling of music by Arcangelo Corelli, Henry Cowell, and Malloy Miller, is by turns elegant, feral, and quirky. The opening passage, with the women swaying in gowns of gorgeous hues, is highlighted by two duets: Jamie Rae Walker and Michelle Fleet, who later give way to Paisa Khobdeh and Eran Bugge.

A quicksilver Aileen Roehl (above, in Paul B Goode's photo) leaps swiftly across the stage - reappearing at the oddest moments - pursued (we don't know why) by Heather McGinley, a striking presence in lime green. 

Above, top to bottom: Michael Apuzzo, Michael Novak, George Smallwood, Michael Trusnovec; in CLOVEN KINGDOM, photo by Paul B Goode

The Taylor men, in white tie and tails, seize the stage. A tribe of dapper savages, they perform their masculine rituals and build themselves into towering constructs. Their dance is emphatic and relentless.

Mirrored head-dresses for the women add a glittering aspect to the spectacle: Laura Halzack and Christina Lynch Markham bring a touch of the ironic to their vignette. The gentlemen don masks and the work becomes celebratory; but celebrating what? We don't know...eccentricity, perhaps? CLOVEN KINGDOM is a particular favorite of mine from the Taylor catalog.

Above: Heather McGinley and Francisco Graciano in EVENTIDE; photo by Paul B Goode

EVENTIDE, one of Taylor's most lyrical works, unfolds before a backdrop of hazy trees on a late-Summer afternoon. The Ralph Vaughan Williams scores evoke the English countryside, with some lovely playing from viola soloist Maureen Gallagher. Following a gracious ensemble dance (Prelude), there are five gently contrasted duets. In the first, Parisa Khobdeh and Michael Trusnovec summon feelings of slow, elusive tenderness; there's a beautiful, cherishing shoulder lift at the end. Eager and airy, the second duet matches Jamie Rae Walker with Sean Mahoney: both of these dancers have been looking especially fine this season.

There follows a pas de quatre for Laura Halzack, Heather McGinley, James Samson and Francisco Graciano, and then a wistful Eran Bugge enters. She is pursued by the subtly predatory Robert Kleinendorst, and their duet ends sadly with Ms. Bugge left alone. Heather McGinley and Francisco Graciano bring a sense of spaciousness and light to their 'perpetual motion' duet. And finally Ms. Khobdeh and Mr. Trusnovec re-appear in a poignant, consoling passage. The work concludes with an extended promenade for the entire cast. The ballet leaves us musing on our romantic choices over the years, and from it we carry away thoughts of what might have been.

Above: Laura Halzack and Michael Apuzzo in COMPANY B; photo by Paul B Goode

COMPANY B, set to songs sung by those Queens of Harmony, The Andrews Sisters, is a far darker work than people often realize. It took me a few viewings to begin to see that, for all its surface merriment, this is a tragic ballet.

Of the characters and relationships in this dancework, none are likely to have a happy ending. With rumor of war running like a sinister thread thru even the most upbeat moments, we watch a radiantly joyous Laura Halzack and Michael Apuzzo dance the Pennsylvania Polka, knowing he'll soon be drafted and she'll be left forlorn. Francisco Graciano, that handsome devil, is Tico - who "knows of every lovers' lane and how to go there" - but he is already wounded in action (Francisco later nailed his solo in the finale, showing that you can't keep a good man down...)

Nerdy Michael Trusnovec in "Oh, Johnny" might get an exemption for his bad eyesight, but men who don't serve get pummeled at home. Longing for romance, the marvelous Michelle Fleet casts a spell over us with "I Can Dream, Can't I?" but she's unlikely to ever see the object of her affection again once he's been shipped overseas.  In "Joseph! Joseph!" Jamie Rae Walker, Aileen Roehl, and Christina Lynch Markham hope to hear wedding bells before their men go off to war; their guys - Michael Trusnovec, Michael Apuzzo, and George Smallwood - know better. 

Robert Kleinendorst as the "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" dances the heck out of this cleverly-worded song, but this kid won't be playing Reveille any more: a bullet finds him, and there's no one to mourn his passing. Eran Bugge, the come-hither "Rum And Coca-Cola" girl, has the world on a string at the moment but she'll end up either with an STD or waiting for a monthly check from her baby-daddy somewhere in Iowa - if he remembers her at all. And finally, poignantly, Heather McGinley - that red-haired vision of loveliness - spends a last few moments with her beloved (Sean Mahoney) before he falls in with his comrades and is marched off to the front: "There Will Never Be Another You". Another dream shattered.

The powerful irony of COMPANY B hit home harder than ever today, especially now that we have a family member in the service. War is Hell, in so many ways and on so many fronts.

Amanda Selwyn's RENEWAL

Above: production photo from Amanda Selwyn's RENEWAL by Christopher Duggan

Friday March 13th, 2015 - Celebrating their 15th anniversary, Amanda Selwyn Dance Theatre presenting an evening-length work entitled RENEWAL down at the Tribeca Performing Arts Center. As I have come to expect from Ms. Selwyn's presentations, it was a well-crafted, finely-lit, and beautifully danced production.

Drawing from past works, Amanda Selwyn's RENEWAL is both a retrospective and a cohesive look at where she and her Company are at the moment. By presenting a series of sixteen 'short subjects', the evening keeps us constantly engrossed in the movement, enhanced by the individual attractiveness and commitment of the dancers. Ms. Selwyn's choreography blends athleticism, theatricality, sensuality, romance, passion, and humor in good measure, and a collage of well-chosen music underscores the swings of mood and gives the production a cohesive feeling.

Each of RENEWAL's segments has a sub-title: the evening opens with Five Fingers, where six dancers pose, sway, and dance in sync before breaking out in individual moves. Drag and Drop begins in silence, a man manipulating a rag-doll woman while four other girls dance in the foreground. 

We then begin to meet the dancers as individuals, commencing with a powerful solo Building, performed in a pathway of light by Sarah Starkweather. Displaying intense concentration and a compelling presence, Ms. Starkweather moves back and forth across the space as if searching for something. She is so close to us that we can feel her palpable sense of quiet urgency. Torrey McAnena and Adam Robert Dickerson then dance a duet of sexy surrender in Reflect, an adagio set to cello and piano. A small ice-globe/candle glows on a table as Emily Pacilio appears, moving along shifting paths of light in Dream. Randall Smith then appears, drawing Ms. Pacilio into a duet that is both sensuous and somewhat ominous: this is Interlude. Dancers bearing more ice-candles then dance in-sync in support of Ms. Pacilio's solo, Echo.

A major shift in dynamic comes next with Clockwork: in colorful costumes, Torrey McAnena, Sarah Starkweather, Adam Robert Dickerson, and Randall Smith are seen in a circular pool of bright light. To jazzy music, they look sculptural in this limited space. Expanding the movement outward, the face of a clock is illuminated on the floor. Checkerboard squares of light glow as Ms. McAnena and Mr. Smith begin a duet On The Board; they are joined by Emily Pacilio and Sarah Buscaino...and then the partnerings shift and two women become the central figures.

A Chinese-sounding melody opens Face Off, which begins with a triple pas de deux. The women dance, and then the men, to an expansive, insistent big beat. The dancers pose in patches of light for Moving Squares before exploring larger moves; a female duet ensues and again the beat turns big and steady.

The sound of a cold wind and the re-appearance of the ice-lites set the mood for Boxed In which evolves into a pair of male solos: Randall Smith and Adam Robert Dickerson, their expressive bodies beautifully illuminated, move in their own spheres to the sound of a ticking clock. In Retreat, Mr. Smith continues a solo dance, lithe and sinuous, as the ensemble provide a ritualistic setting. Fall and Get Up commences to pulsating music: there's a duet for two men, a man and a woman fighting, and two women exploring a possible relationship.

Torry McAnena performs an impressive solo in Reverb; to the music of piano and strings, Torrey moves along varying illuminated pathways. Her solo, so finely danced, is filled with an atmosphere of slow seeking. And then suddenly we have reached the end: in Stop Look Listen, the sounds of wind and water and Afro-flavoured rhythms draw the dancers into a celebratory state. The evening has zoomed by, having taken us on a voyage of moods. Kudos to Ms. Selwyn, her tech artists, and most especially to the dancers who brought it all to life.

Thomas Adès @ The NY Philharmonic

Thursday March 12th, 2015 - Thomas Adès (above) in a dual role as composer and conductor for this New York Philharmonic concert which featured classic works of Beethoven and Berlioz and the US premiere of a recent Adès vocal work, Totentanz. The performance marked the composer's NY Philharmonic podium debut.

The Beethoven first symphony opened the evening.  Here Maestro Adès, conducting without a score, immediately seized the imagination, both with his approach to the music and with the deft physicality of his conducting technique. The symphony - played with the Philharmonic's customary tonal sheen - sounded wonderfully fresh and vibrant, and watching Adès summon up the various voices with surety of purpose became quite mesmerizing. The music had a natural flow and - despite unwanted applause between movements - conductor and musicians gave it a vitality that was captivating.

Hector Berlioz's overture to Les Francs-juges (The Free Judges, or The Self-Appointed Judges) is all that remains of an opera the young composer wrote in 1826. When the mounting of a production of the music-drama became unfeasible, Berlioz discarded the opera's music or re-used it in other works. But the overture has survived as a concert piece, and the Philharmonic brought it superbly to life in Thomas Adès's brisk and dramatic reading. When listening to Berlioz, always expect the unexpected: a dense and powerful brass chorale suddenly looms up, and there's a scrappy passage of drum beats battling surges of strings. Later the violas saw feverishly away as the violins pluck in agitated accents. It's an exhilarating piece and tonight's performance was illuminating.   

Totentanz ('Dance of Death') premiered in London in 2013; having been put off by Adès's opera The Tempest at The Met, I was admittedly wary of Totentanz and even considered sneaking out during the interval. But it proved an impressive work and one of the few pieces of 'new music' that I have heard in recent seasons that I wouldn't mind hearing again. 

To begin with, the concept in highly imaginative - Death (baritone soloist) invites each of his victims to join him in a final dance, and they answer (mezzo-soprano soloist in multiple guises) with pride, defiance, or hopeless acceptance. The victims range from emperor and pope to innocent maiden and new-born child.

This ongoing dialogue, as Death visits one victim after another, is carried out against an unfurled tapestry of orchestral sound, from battering waves to delicate whispers. Percussion is a major player in the dance, and Adès shows a masterful touch in the orchestration of each victim's response.

Baritone Mark Stone as Death displayed strong, steady tone and ample reserves of power, plus a keen sense of both menace and enticement in his delivery of the text. His mezzo-soprano counter-part, Christine Stotijn, showed a somewhat weathered vocal quality but also a gift for expressiveness and a keen intensity of delivery that gave each portrait in her gallery of characterizations compelling individuality. She covered the wide range, from deep chest tones to sustained higher notes, with authority.

Having conducted the Beethoven and Berlioz from memory, the composer used a score for his own work, doubtless because of the vast number of cues he would have to give to his huge host of musicians.

The cumulative force of the work swept us along with a sense of the inevitability. In Death's meeting with his final victims - virgin and infant - the music took on a touching aspect. But for all his assumed gentleness in these moments, Death remained implacable. 

In death we are all alike. 

Paul Taylor @ Lincoln Center 2015

Above: Michelle Fleet and ensemble in ESPLANADE; photo by Paul B Goode

Wednesday March 11th, 2015 - Paul Taylor's American Modern Dance, which most of us will continue to refer to simply as "Taylor", are at Lincoln Center for a three-week season. Tonight's programme featured one of the great dance-maker's newest creations, SEA LARK (New York premiere), book-ended by two of his best-beloved classics, ARDEN COURT and  ESPLANADE. My special thanks to the Company's Lisa Labrado for arranging things so smoothly and generously.

An eager and wonderfully attentive audience welcomed conductor Donald York and the Orchestra of St. Luke's who provided the Company's return to live music for this current season. The regal, 'olde England' strains of William Boyce's symphonies set the tone for curtain-rise and ARDEN COURT delighted us yet again.

Under the softly glowing image of an English rose, the Taylor men, bare-chested in confetti-flecked white tights, enter in boldly elegant leaps. Their opening ensemble (above, photo by Paul B Goode) gives way to a series of duets, led off by the dynamic and witty pairing of Aileen Roehl and Sean Mahoney, both dancing with fresh clarity. Parisa Khobdeh and Michael Apuzzo have a gorgeous rapport; their duet melds into a solo for the handsomely energetic Francisco Graciano. James Samson and Robert Kleinendorst bring a gently ironic competitive spirit to their duet.

In the ballet's most lyrical passage, Taylor paragons Laura Halzack and Michael Trusnovec (about, photo by Paul B Goode) radiate tenderness and a sense of quiet mutual joy. A stylized pas de trois for the three women (Laura, Aileen, and Parisa) leads back to the men's ensemble...

...and this iconic Taylor moment (photo by Paul B Goode).

Above: Michael Apuzzo in SEA LARK; photo by Whitney Browne

The New York premiere of SEA LARK followed; here Mr. Taylor turns to the score Francis Poulenc originally penned for Bronislava Nijinska's 1924 salon-ballet LES BICHES. Taylor's take on the score transports us to la plage where a bright sunny sky and aquamarine waves (set design by Alex Katz) serve as a backdrop for a group of romping beach-goers.

Duets (Christina Lynch Markham and Sean Mahoney, above, in Whitney Browne's photo), solos and small ensembles are playfully strung together, and a small, crisply white sailboat is manipulated across the set by the men. The choreography has a juvenile simplicity; it is the Poulenc score that gives SEA LARK its naive charm. 

Above: Francisco Graciano and Sean Mahoney in SEA LARK (a Whitney Browne photo)   

Above: from ESPLANADE, photo by Paul B Goode

The ever-resounding glory of Paul Taylor's 1975 classic ESPLANADE brought the evening to its ovation-inducing close. As the ballet unfolds against the same Bach score that Balanchine used for CONCERTO BAROCCO, we are able to savour the individual appeal, mind-boggling physicality, and generous artistry of these stellar dancers who keep the Taylor repertoire fresh and brilliant: Michelle Fleet, Parisa Khobdeh, Eran Bugge, Laura Halzack, Heather McGinley, Jamie Rae Walker, Michael Trusnovec, James Samson, and Michael Novak.

ESPLANADE's centerpiece, a uniquely expressive duet danced superbly today by Eran Bugge and Michael Trusnovec (in Paul B Goode's photo above), seemed to distill all that Paul Taylor has said to us in the many danceworks he has crafted over the decades. When the choreographer appeared for a bow at the end of the performance, we were able to express both our gratitude and our respect for an American hero of dance.

Night Train

“We leave something of ourselves behind when we leave a place; we stay there, even though we go away. And there are things in us that we can find again only by going back there.”

~ Paul Mercier: Night Train to Lisbon

Conversational Strings @ CMS

Above: cellist Jakob Koranyi; photo © Lisa-Marie Mazzucci

Sunday March 8th, 2015 - Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center continuing their impressive season with this well-devised programme featuring two works by Mozart book-ending intimate pieces from Bohuslav Martinů and Maurice Ravel, all played with the impeccable and heartfelt artistry that are the hallmarks of the Society's offerings.

Violin/viola duos have a noble heritage in the history of music; Bach and several Baroque composers wrote for the pairing, and just this past week we heard the world premiere of a contemporary setting by Augusta Read Thomas at The Miller Theatre.

This evening's concert opened with Mozart's Duo in g major for violin and viola (K. 423), which had served as an inspiration for the Martinů that followed. In the Mozart, Ida Kavafian and Yura Lee matched musical minds in a finely-blended dialogue.

Arnaud Sussman and Paul Neubauer then took the stage for the Martinů Duo No. 1 for Violin and Viola, “Three Madrigals” (1950).

The Czech composer Bohuslav Martinů had fled the rising tide of Nazism for America in 1941. In early 1947, the prolific composer wrote at his Three Madrigals for violin and viola; this was shortly after he had sustained serious injuries in a fall from a balcony at Tanglewood in July 1946. His long recovery period contributed to his decision not to accept a position he had been offered in Prague, which had fallen under Communist rule by the time he had recovered sufficiently to travel. He did eventually return to Europe, dying in Switzerland in 1959.

Martinů had found immediate inspiration for the Three Madrigals in a performance of the Mozart violin-viola duets by Joseph and Lilian Fuchs, a brother-sister duo to whom he dedicated his Madrigals. Musically, the three pieces show a distinctive blend of Czech folk motifs with the 'vocal' style of the English madrigal. Sussman and Neubauer gave a marvelous performance, most especially in the second duet where they both trilled to scintillating effect. The brisk, dance-like third duet clearly intrigued the audience, especially when the players mutually stopped on a dime at the end.

Maurice Ravel dedicated his Sonata for violin and cello to the memory of Claude Debussy. “The music is stripped to the bone,” Ravel wrote. “Harmonic charm is renounced, and there is an increasing return of emphasis on melody.” For this duet, Yura Lee traded her viola for her violin, and Jakob Koranyi took up his Giovanni Grancino cello, which dates from 1692. The sonata's four movements slip in and out of major/minor motifs, and the work features a remarkable scherzo full of witty, ironic plucking. In the Lento, the two musicians were at their most expressive before swirling onward into the lively finale. The Lee/Koranyi rapport was a truly enjoyable experience, and Ms. Lee's bejeweled shoes were an added visual delight.

All of the musicians the joined forces for Mozart's Quintet in G minor, K. 516, which bears the date May 16, 1787, and was written during the period of the final illness of Mozart's father, who died in Salzburg on May 28th. This is music of heartfelt poignancy, coloured by melancholy verging on despair. Even the minuetto sustains a pensive mood, being punctuated by heavy chords. In the adagio, with its beautiful principal theme, we sometimes have a glimpse of sunshine behind the clouds, but in the end a gentle air of sadness prevails. The final allegro is both delicate and lively, yet it never quite shakes free of an underlying sense of shadow.

The five musicians gave a moving performance; in particular the adagio cast its spell today, with weighty pauses that had their own resonance. The feeling of a conversation, as the programme's title suggested, was strong in the players' silent mutual communication.

In the Playbill's welcoming message today, CMS co-artistic directors Wu Han and David Finckel expressed what I have always felt: "...what makes chamber music so compelling (is) the sensation that everyone is a participant in the performance, listeners and musicians alike, and that there are no barriers to artistic exchange."  This has certainly been the case at every CMS performance I have attended to date.

The Repertory:

• Mozart Duo in G major for Violin and Viola, K. 423 (1783)
• Martinů Duo No. 1 for Violin and Viola, “Three Madrigals” (1950)
• Ravel Sonata for Violin and Cello (1920-22)
• Mozart Quintet in G minor for Two Violins, Two Violas, and Cello, K. 516 (1787)

                                                                                                                                                                         The Artists:  

• Ida Kavafian, violin
• Arnaud Sussmann, violin
• Yura Lee, violin/viola
• Paul Neubauer, viola
• Jakob Koranyi, cello