No dog days of summer at CMNW - part II

Review of Classical Masterpieces - Friday, July 17 at Catlin Gabel School

The music for this concert featured a conservative line-up, because the program consisted of works by Haydn, Mozart, and Mendelssohn. Interestingly enough, Haydn's Passacaglia for violin and viola (arranged by John Halvorsen), which was first up in the concert order, proved to be a challenging and unusual piece. Violinist Elmar Oliveira and cellist Ronald Thomas exchanged the repeating chord pattern with agility and elan. The pizzicati section was very impressive as well. I think that Oliveira landed a little wobbly on the highest note, which was very atypical for him, but that was a very minor flaw in an otherwise impressive performance.

Next on the program came Mozart's Quintet in E-Flat Major for piano and winds, K. 452. Pianist Anne-Marie McDermott, oboist Allan Vogel, clarinetist Jose Franch-Ballester, bassoonist Julie Feves, and hornist William Purvis gave this three-movement piece an excellent turn. Their playing was smooth and elegant throughout. Everyone balanced the sound very well, and a highlight was McDermott's hushed sound at the end of the first movement and the winds pushing the music forward on the second movement, encouraging the audience to anticipate the third movement with all of its delightful inventions.

The concert closed with a magnificent performance of Mendelssohn's Trio No. 2 in C Minor for piano, violin, and cello, Op. 66. McDermott, Oliveria, and Thomas just got into a zone with this music.

But before they began playing, a bit of informality ensued. McDermott thought that her colleagues were positioned too far away; so she motioned them to come closer to her. As Oliveira and Tomas scooted closer, Thomas loudly commented "We usually like to make music while we are sitting in the same time zone." That drew lots of chuckles, and Thomas' witty banter might have made the performers loosen up a bit, because the threesome made Mendelssohn sound downright magical. The second movement was achingly lyrical. The fast passages in the third raced by with fingers flying. The audience reacted with pure glee. There were shouts for an encore, but McDermott, Oliveira, and Thomas called it a night. They had left everything on the stage.

Review of Three Serenades, 1782 to 2007 - Saturday, July 28 at Reed College

This concert marked the season finale of Chamber Music Northwest's 37th summer festival, and a near sell-out audience keenly anticipated a new piece by one of classical music's most popular instrumentalists, bassist Edgar Meyer. One of the neat things about Chamber Music Northwest, is that the final concert usually offers a gaggle of musicians. Upholding this tradition, this program featured nine players in the Mozart and Meyer serenades and twelve in the Dvorak. Everyone was ready for a grand time, and everyone delivered.

Mozart's Serenade in C Minor for winds, K. 388 received a masterful rendition by an ensemble that consisted of oboists Allan Vogel and Stephen Taylor, clarinetists Jose Franch-Ballester and David Shifrin, bassoonists Milan Turkovic and Julie Feves, hornists David Jolley and William Purvis, and double bassist Meyer. With veteran virtuoso Vogel in the lead, the ensemble hit a good stride from the get go in the first movement. Of course, part of the success in such a small group is for the musicians to read the eyes and gestures of the leader. Vogel strikes me as someone who might present a problem in that respect, because he tends to squint while he plays - like a fellow who is having problems with his contact lenses. Vogel can maintain a squint while he arches his eyebrows -which he does quite often. In any case, the ensemble had no problem whatsoever in following his directions, because they played impeccably. The burnished sound from the horns was glorious. The light, dance, almost baroque feel of the third movement was superb, and in the fourth movement, Vogel and company played con brio and with gusto, too.

Meyer's Serenade for Double Bass and Wind Octet followed. This four movement piece came across as an enigmatic work that was filled with intriguing jazz-like riffs for the bass. From the outset, the meter constantly seemed to change, and, well, it looked like it might have been a real headache for any player who thought that he was going to come in and coast through some fluffy little number. The wind ensemble consisted of oboies Taylor and Vogel, clarinetists Shifrin and Franch-Ballester, bassoonists Turkovic and Peter Kolkay, and hornists Jolley and Purvis. They all had a real workout.

Meyer can play the bass fiddle like a virtuoso on a violin. He was all over the place, plucking one moment and then noodling around like a crazy man. He seemed to be making a statement that was then commented upon by the wind octet (not necessarily all at once). In the third movement, everyone started out together, but then the sound became strident as if the conversation became an argument. The fourth movement was more uptempo with four heavily accented beats every now and then. The music had lots of tricky stuff throughout; for example, everyone had to play off the beat a lot of the time. Fortunately for Meyer and his music, he played with a veteran group likes a challenge. Meyer did receive a standing ovation. I'm not sure if anyone in the audience got the hang of the piece, but I'm sure that most of us would like to hear it again.

After intermission, a dozen players came out to play Dvorak's Serenade in D Minor for winds, cello, and double bass, Op. 44. The Oregon Symphony's principal hornist, John Cox, joined Taylor, Vogel, Shifrin, Franch-Ballester, Turkovic, Feves, Jolley, Purvis, Thomas, and Meyer to make a splash with this wonderful piece. The playing of Vogel and Shifrin in this number was particularly outstanding. They had a memorable way of trickling down a cascade of scales and diminishing the volume at the same time. Also outstanding was the very expressive playing of Franch-Ballester throughout the piece. He looks like he is in his early 20s, but he plays like someone who has had much, much more experience. At the end, the music lifted the audience to its feet for a rousing ovation.