There’s Still Time To Enjoy Classical, Jazz And Swing

UPDATE: Music Mountain released the following statement on Sept. 7: "The Florida-based Amernet Quartet will not be able to perform this Sunday, September 10, due to Hurricane Irma. The concert is canceled, and there will unfortunately be no replacement. Please contact our box office if you had purchased a ticket, or have any questions."

Weeks after many other summer classical festivals have folded their tents, Music Mountain in Falls Village continues its weekend chamber series right to the crisp cusp of autumn. The final concert, a special benefit with the Juilliard String Quartet, takes place on Sunday, Sept. 17, at 3 p.m.

I took in a recent concert by the renowned St. Petersburg Piano Quartet, with pianist Tao Lin, in a program of Brahms, Shostakovich and Schumann. The results, played to a nearly full house, were mostly stirring and definitely crowd-pleasing.

The Brahms was the least successful of the pieces. The St. Pete’s violist, Boris Vayner, performed the second Opus 20 Viola Sonata in E-flat Major, accompanied by Lin on piano. The work is a version of the late clarinet sonata Brahms wrote for his clarinet “muse,” Richard Mühlfeld.

Vayner is a more-than-accomplished violist, but for whatever reason, his playing seemed shaky in passages. Lin shines in classical repertoire, with crisp articulation and a bright, light tone. His Brahms came across as timid, lacking the needed Romantic heft.

From the opening bars of the Shostakovich Piano Trio #2 in E-minor, Opus 67 — a series of eerie high notes played in harmonics on violin and cello — we were in the ensemble’s wheelhouse. There may be nobody alive who does Shostakovich like Alla Aranovskaya, the principal violinist. Her playing is direct and devastating. Written in 1944, the work is full of Shostakovich’s signature pathos, along with sections of joyous folk-inspired dance and gentle mockery. Lin’s precision served this music well, and cellist Claudio Jaffe was outstanding.

Following intermission, the full ensemble performed a spirited rendition of Robert Schumann’s youthful Piano Quartet in E-flat Major, Opus 47. This is Schumann at his sunniest. Melodies flow effortlessly off the pages of his score. The quartet played as effortlessly and seamlessly as the music desired.

Still to come in the Sunday Chamber Series is the aforementioned Juilliard String Quartet performing Beethoven, Haydn and Dvorak on Sept. 17 (tickets to this benefit cost $60). A concert featuring the Amernet Quartet was scheduled for Sept. 10, but has been canceled due to Hurricane Irma. Chamber concerts take place on Sundays at 3 p.m. in Gordon Hall.

For jazz and swing lovers, the Saturday night Twilight Series also continues into September, with the Galvanized Jazz Band on Sept. 9 and Jive by Five on Sept. 16. Those concerts take place on Saturdays at 6:30 p.m., and a preconcert dinner package is available.

For tickets and information, go to www.musicmountain.org or call 860-824-7126. Fred Baumgarten is on the board of Music Mountain.

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