The last of the Twilight Concerts at RLS, I am happy to say, went ever so smoothly. The chapel bells didn't chime on the hour to disturb the concert, and Libby Wallfisch's violin didn't self destruct.
However, there was a great deal more to this concert than merely the avoidance of minor glitches. It was a superb concert from several perspectives. First of all there was the program itself. We were hearing in its entirety, Haydn's
The Last Seven Words of Christ in its string quartet version. Then we had some of the Festival's heavy guns on hand to perform the work (the musicians consisted of violinists Libby Walfisch and David Myford, violist George Thomson and cellist Douglas McNames). And, lastly, we had a heartfelt narration written and performed by Marcia Gambrell Hovick.
Excellent ingredients, you might say, and, sure enough, we observed them being well mixed and witnessed the resulting explosion - an explosion of deeply felt emotions that were artfully controlled, but utterly convincing.
This is the first time I have heard Marcia Hovick as author and narrator of a dramatic piece and could tell that she had given the project a great deal of her personal attention. It was obvious to everyone in attendance that she achieved moments of intense drama and religious fervor. If Ms. Hovick ever elects to receive the cloth, I might personally give serious consideration to becoming a member of her flock. In any event, I found her narration at all times absorbing and totally pertinent to each musical segment that followed.
We heard some rather inspired music making during the concert. The Festival musicians were in fine form and produced some memorable moments, my favorite being the wonderful simple violin solo accompanied by the other instruments playing pizzicato that occurred in Sonata No. 5. Although interrupted several times by some stormy segments, this delightful solo kept returning. It was definitely Haydn at his best, and Ms. Wallfisch was, as always, in fine form and played splendidly. It was fascinating to observe how the string players on this occasion chose to hold their bows. Ms. Wallfisch and Mr. McNames favored the more Baroque bow position, whereas Myford and Thompson held the bow closer to the frog. I assume thus that Wallfisch & McNames must have been using Baroque style bows rather than the classic "Tourte" bow. I am not sure what the difference in sound might be. Hmmm….! Perhaps I need to attend one of Ms. Wallfisch's lectures.
As always, the closing section - "The earthquake, in quick tempo with all the force possible" provides a suitably effective conclusion.
What an effective way to end the "Twilight Concerts."
End
