Guarneri Reunion Closes Linton Season

The Guarneri Quartet left to right, Arnold Steinhardt, John Dalley, Michael Tree, Peter Wiley

When the Guarneri Quartet disbanded in 2009 after 45 years, they agreed that they would not perform quartets together again.

They did not agree that they would not perform together again, said cellist Peter Wiley at Sunday afternoon’s Linton Music series concert at First Unitarian Church in Avondale.

And so they did -- but not quartets, having the vast array of literature for other combinations to choose from.

Sunday’s concert was a reunion for violinist Arnold Steinhardt, violinist/violist John Dalley, violist Michael Tree and cellist Peter Wiley, who, joined by violinist Ida Kavafian, performed quintets and duos for an enthusiastic audience who could scarcely believe themselves so fortunate.

The program comprised Mozart’s Quintet for Two Violins, Two Violas and Cello in C Major, K. 515, excerpts from Bartok’s Duos for Two Violins, performed by Steinhardt on violin and Tree on viola, and the Quintet for Two Violins, Two Violas and Cello in E-flat Major, B. 180, Op. 97 by Dvorak.

Mozart's viola (Mozart house, Salzburg, Austria)

They opened with Mozart’s great C Major Quintet, Tree and Dalley performing first and second viola, respectively. The first thing to take one’s breath was the sound the ensemble produced, beginning with Wiley’s warm, shapely rendition of the opening theme, answered in question-and-answer fashion by Steinhardt. It was the violas’ turn in the Menuetto, where Tree and Dalley shared winsome, melodious thirds, then Tree and Steinhardt in the Andante, a virtual love duet between the first violin and first viola. The quintet’s ensemble precision, honed over time as a quartet and with Kavafian a sterling partner on this occasion, was apparent throughout, never more so than in the swift, charming Allegro rondo finale.

Steinhardt and Tree rounded out the first half of the program with selections from Bartok’s Duos for Two Violins, performed on violin and viola. These delightful, epigrammatic works were written as teaching pieces, with graded difficulty from beginner to advanced. Based on folk melodies, they are also character pieces, many of them dances. The duo began with “Teasing Song” from book III, which was just that at a mere thirty-seconds-long. By contrast, “Sorrow,” also from book III, was intense, seemingly drenched with (and with an uncanny evocation of) tears.

In “Pizzicato” from book IV, they displayed not only daunting technique but, again, a truly beautiful sound. “Burlesque” (book II) was just plain fun, as was “Ruthenian Dance” (book), a delightfully spicy romp, which brought the set to a close.

Dvorak’s Viola Quintet in E-flat Major was composed during his sojourn in the United States from 1892-95, specifically in the summer of 1893, during a visit to the Czech community in Spillville, Iowa. It is said to have been influenced by Native American music and by the performance by a troupe of Indians who were passing through. (We hear as much of Dvorak’s Slavonic heritage, whose pentatonic idioms are shared by many cultures worldwide.) Whatever, it is a lovely work, reminiscent of Dvorak’s other “American” music, such as the String Quartet in F Major, Op. 96, and the “New World” Symphony.

The quintet gave it a handsome performance. The Larghetto, a theme with five variations, was distinguished by meltingly beautiful solos by Dalley (now on first viola) and Wiley, while the folk-like finale, with its galloping (Indian drumming?) theme was a frolic for all, capped by a boisterous sign off at the end.

The concert repeats at 7:30 p.m. tonight (May 20) at Congregation Beth Adam in Loveland. Tickets (scarce) at 381-5858, or online at www.lintonmusic.org

Announced at Sunday’s concert was the schedule for Linton’s 2013-2014 season.

There are six concerts, all at 4 p.m. Sundays at First Unitarian Church. Four will repeat on Linton’s “Encore! Linton” series at 7:30 Mondays at Congregation Beth Adam in Loveland:

Oct. 6 and 7. Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson Trio. Joseph Kalichstein, piano. Jaime Laredo, violin. Sharon Robinson, cello. Timothy Lees, violin. Christian Colberg, viola. Dwight Parry, oboe. Jonathan Gunn, clarinet. William Winstead, bassoon. Elizabeth Freimuth, horn. Beethoven, Quintet for Piano and Winds, Op. 16. Dvorak, Quintet for Piano and Strings in A Major, Op. 81. Stanley Silverman, Trio No. 2, “Reveille.”

Nov. 17 and 18. Anna Polonsky, piano. Orion Weiss, piano. Jaime Laredo, violin. Sharon Robinson, cello. Four-hand works by Schubert and Dvorak. Schumann, Fantasy Pieces. Stravinsky, Suite Italienne. Handel/Halverson, Passacaglia.

Feb. 2 and 3, 2014. Randolph Bowman, flute. Timothy Lees, violin. Gabriel Pegis, violin. Christian Colberg, viola. Ilya Finkelshteyn, cello. Owen Lee, double bass. Dvorak, Quintet for Strings No. 2 in G Major, Op. 77. Beethoven, Serenade for Flute, Violin and Viola in D Major, Op. 25. John Harbison, “Six American Painters” for Flute, Violin, Viola and Cello.

March 2. (No Monday performance) Augustin Hadelich, violin. Emilie-Anne Gendron, violin. Christian Colberg, viola. Ilya Finkelshteyn, cello. Pablo Sáinz Villegas, guitar. Ravel, String Quartet. Piazzola, “Histoire du Tango.” Rodrigo, “Invocación y danza.” Ysaÿe, Sonata No. 6 for Solo Violin in E Major, Op. 27. Takemitsu, “Rocking Mirror Daybreak.” Roland Dyens, “Tango en Skäi.”

March 23. (No Monday performance)  Sergei Babayan, piano. Joan Kwuon, violin. Joel Smirnoff, viola. Sharon Robinson, cello. Brahms, Piano Quartet in G Minor, Op. 25. Mozart, Piano Quartet in G Minor, K. 478. Ulysses Kay, Five Portraits.

May 18 and 19. Jon Kimura Parker, piano. Cho-Liang Lin, violin. Aloysia Friedmann, violin/viola. Desmond Hoebig, cello. Brahms, Piano Quartet in C Minor, Op. 60. Shostakovich, Piano Trio in E Minor, Op. 67. Jake Heggie, “Orca Island Ferry.”

Further information at www.lintonmusic.org