Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center
by
Lyn Bronson
Last night at Sunset Center in Carmel, Chamber Music
Monterey Bay presented for the first time to Monterey Peninsula audiences the
fine ensemble, Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center (CMSLC). CMSLC has more
than one group of musicians touring the circuits under its auspices, but we were
pleased to hear the group consisting of Inon Barnatan, piano, Stephen Taylor,
oboe, David Schifrin, clarinet, Peter Kolkay, Bassoon and Steward Rose, horn.
Bassoonist Stephen Kolkay, speaking for the group,
announced at the beginning of the concert that although according to the printed
program the musicians were scheduled to begin the program with the Beethoven
Quintet, and end with the Mozart Quintet, the musicians decided to reverse the
order and end with the Beethoven. This turned out to be a felicitous choice,
for, as much as we admire the Mozart Quintet, the Beethoven made a better effect
as an ending to the program.
Thus said, the musicians proceeded to enthrall us with a
lovely performance of the Mozart. Since this work is not a Mozart piano concerto
disguised as a quintet for piano and winds, but a work written with surprisingly
equal roles for the players, we had ample opportunities to hear each of the
musicians individually. Initially bassoonist Kolkay and horn player Rose made
the strongest impression, but as the Mozart progressed, the others players
warmed up and by the Rondo finale, sparks were flying, and the passages truly
flowed like oil. Pianist Inon Barnatan was specially to be admired for his
ability to play brilliantly (and always musically), but without overwhelming his
colleagues.
Novelty number one on the program was the Divertissement
for Oboe, Clarinet and Bassoon by Jean Françaix. In this piece we heard the
idiosyncratic effervescence and irony we expect from Françaix –
neo-classical expression, but with Gallic charm and a touch of garlic. After the
enigmatic opening Prélude, the second
movement, Allegretto assai, was a
charming mixture of jazzy rhythms and brilliant instrumentation. It was the
third movement, Elégie, that most
revealed Francaix’s quirky humor as the bassoon provided a persistent obbligato
to some lovely melodies − this
bleeping obbligato reminded me of the amusing sounds of the laboratory equipment
making strange noises in the 1951 Alec Guinness film, “The Man in the White
Suit.”
The second novelty of the evening was Francis Poulenc’s
Trio for Piano, Oboe, and Bassoon, another witty, thoroughly effective work,
with Poulenc’s dry humor cleverly exploited in the two wind instruments. Not
only did we hear in the first movement some gorgeous melodies from Taylor and
Kolkay, but there were more to come in the second movement, where we heard
Poulenc at his best. The last movement was especially amusing as Poulenc spun
out for us a witty fugue.
Ending the program as promised was the Beethoven Quintet
for Piano and Winds. We know that Beethoven was influenced by Mozart, but it is
obvious that Beethoven, even at the tender age of 22, was striking out in new
directions, for in this work there is logic and a continuous flow that carries
us along inevitably. The musicians from
CMSLC did themselves proud in a powerful and charming performance of this work.
There was a long and sustained ovation, but no encore.
And, in truth, what could be an appropriate encore after such a
satisfying work as the Beethoven Quintet for Piano and Winds?
