New York

Your monthly critical round-up of performances, recordings and publications

Trio Zimbalist

★

impresses in an unconventional programme

PAGE 84

Tim Posner:

★

a cellist on the up

PAGE 87

Daniel Rowland

★

offers a new take on a Richter classic

PAGE 90

CHAMBER MUSIC SOCIETY OF LINCOLN CENTER

ROSE STUDIO 18 JANUARY 2024

Paul Huang, Mika Sasaki and Paul Canellakis bringing beauty to Saariaho

CHERYLYNN TSUSHIMA

The New York premiere of Jessie Montgomery’s Musings for two violins is easily my new favourite work of hers and was spectacularly performed by CMS violinists Paul Huang and Danbi Um. Each of the six movements was delightful in its own way but throughout them all a Bach-like elegance and controlled sophistication took precedence. Huang and Um played with such resonant sound that it often sounded like more than two violins, and yet their ensemble was so well matched that simultaneously they seemed as one player.

Lera Auerbach’s powerful Violin Sonata no.2 ‘September 11’ followed, and Um – now with pianist Mika Sasaki – captured well its intensity and force. Disconnected episodes depicting shock and grief interrupted each other, interspersed with lyrical passages. The virtuosic cadenza was especially powerful and the duo’s committed performance was intense and often jarring but never ugly despite its subject matter. Composer Chris Rogerson spoke about his trio for two violins and piano, Afterword, explaining its connections to Jessye Norman; it did indeed have a broadly nostalgic and elegiac feeling, and I admired his ability to marry pain and beauty in music. Kaija Saariaho’s piano trio Light and Matter closed this imaginative programme of new music. This was a piece filled with extended techniques and non-traditional textures and, while this was perhaps the least lyrical offering here, Sasaki, Huang and cellist Nicholas Canellakis brought beauty and sensitivity to the score.

LEAH HOLLINGSWORTH

To browse through more than a decade of The Strad’s recording reviews, visit www.thestrad.com/reviews

APOLLON MUSAGÈTE QUARTET

WEILL RECITAL HALL, CARNEGIE HALL 7 FEBRUARY 2024

The Apollon Musagète Quartet demonstrated power in its delicate, understated approach at Carnegie Hall, performing Schubert’s Quartettsatz with impeccable ensemble and quiet strength. The flautando opening made it almost difficult to hear the melody, but eventually the sweet sound of the first violin simply floated above the accompanying triplets.

Dvořák’s E flat major Quartet (no.10) followed, again featuring a stunningly beautiful blend of sound from the lower three voices with the first violin prominently displayed on top. While I would have preferred a stronger bass and more conspicuous inner lines, the group’s overall poise and sophistication made for a compelling performance. The finale was performed with great energy and clarity – fast string crossings always clean and clear. Schubert’s E flat major String Quartet D87 followed the interval in much the same manner: expressive playing, thoughtful shaping and impressive exploration of the softer dynamics throughout. The minor-key Trio had an otherworldly beauty and the final Allegro was played with thoughtful direction.

Shostakovich’s powerful String Quartet no.8 closed the evening and brought with it a wonderful contrast to the restraint of the first three works. The depth of intensity was perfect for the dark agony of the opening Largo and the Allegro was fiery without sacrificing sound quality. It was gratifying to hear the group really dig in and play with a deeper sound, and a grittiness that was powerful but never ugly. The finale was as heartbreaking as it should be.

LEAH HOLLINGSWORTH

Finesse aplenty from the Apollon Musagète Quartet

JENNIFER TAYLOR

AUSTIN WULLIMAN (VIOLIN) JACK QUARTET, ALEC GOLDFARB (ELECTRIC GUITAR)

ROULETTE, NYC 15 FEBRUARY 2024

As a violinist in the intrepid Jack Quartet, Austin Wulliman has been at the forefront of presenting 21st-century composers – and now he can add himself to that list, with The News from Utopia, his album released in 2023. To celebrate the project, Wulliman performed portions from the recording live, with expert assistance from his Jack colleagues – Christopher Otto (violin), John Pickford Richards (viola) and Jay Campbell (cello) – plus Alec Goldfarb on guitar.

While the processes Wulliman deployed are a trifle complicated to describe here, suffice to say that they involved recorded samples of his own violin work, special effects such as digital reverb, and a panoply of additional electronic effects, occasionally expanding the notated material from the album, creating a unique presence for the live performance.

Gently flickering surfaces barely concealed sophisticated layers of sound beneath. Throbbing tones might have been hordes of crickets, flying through fuzzy microtonal clouds, or subatomic particles given microphones to document their collisions. If the means were complex, the actual listening was compelling.

Among many striking moments was Blink (2020), with video images by Iván Decoud, an artist and composer based in Buenos Aires. With Goldfarb added to form a quintet, the ensemble created shimmering textures that seemed to dissolve on stage, while a screen above offered abstract patterns, sandy beaches and birds (and their observers): perhaps nature was being reinterpreted, transformed into electronic pulses. As an ensemble at the forefront of the cutting edge, the Jack players exuded a naturalness as if they were pulling out a well-rehearsed array of Haydn.

BRUCE HODGES

JAN VOGLER (CELLO) AMANDA GORMAN (POET)

ISAAC STERN AUDITORIUM, CARNEGIE HALL 17 FEBRUARY 2024

An inspiring evening with Amanda Gorman and Jan Vogler

What do a brilliant young poet of today and a brilliant composer of four hundred years ago have in common? More than you would think – as I discovered at Carnegie Hall, where Amanda Gorman and Jan Vogler presented an unforgettable and stimulating evening, combining recitations of Gorman’s poetry interspersed with movements from Bach’s Solo Cello Suites. While there didn’t seem to be a direct relationship in terms of content, the clarity and rhythmic intensity of Gorman’s diction correlated directly with Vogler’s sense of articulation and bow use in the Bach. This was especially notable in the Prelude of the G major Suite, while the Allemande from that suite seemed inspired after Gorman’s reading of ‘An Ode We Owe’. He performed the C minor Suite scordatura as written, and the Prelude began so fast I couldn’t catch my breath or sink into the darkness of the key, although the fugue was quite stately and better paced. The Sarabande was truly beautiful and as I listened to Gorman’s ‘New Day’s Lyric’ that followed, it struck me that her smart wordplay was not dissimilar to Bach’s academic fugues – both artists masterful in their approach to form and nuance.

After the interval came Bach’s C major Suite: the Prelude was faster and less introspective than I would have liked, the Sarabande also seeming rushed, perhaps in response to Gorman’s almost breathless recitation of her infamous ‘The Hill We Climb’. The encore was the jewel of the evening – Gorman recited ‘What We Carried’ (again) while Vogler played the G major Prelude – this was true chamber music, the cellist masterfully timing tops of chords and phrases to match her breaths.

LEAH HOLLINGSWORTH