Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center
The following program notes may only be used in conjunction with the one-time streaming term for the corresponding Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center (CMS) Front Row National program, with the following credit(s):???Program notes by Laura Keller, CMS Editorial Manager??? 2021 Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center???Any other use of these materials in connection with non-CMS concerts or events is prohibited.??In EarnestPROGRAMFranz Schubert (1797-1828)Quartettsatz in C minor for Strings, D. 703 (1820)Allegro assaiEscher String Quartet (Adam Barnett-Hart, Aaron Boyd, violin; Pierre Lapointe, viola; Brook Speltz, cello)?--INTERMISSION (discussion with the artists)--?Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893)Trio in A minor for Piano, Violin, and Cello, Op. 50 (1881-82)Pezzo elegiaco: Moderato assaiTema con variazioni—Variazione finale e codaGilles Vonsattel, piano; Chad Hoopes, violin; Clive Greensmith, celloNOTES ON THE PROGRAMQuartettsatz in C minor for Strings, D. 703 (1820)Franz Schubert (Vienna, 1797 – Vienna, 1828)Schubert had a long history with the string quartet. In his teens, he played viola in a family quartet with his father on cello and his brothers on the violins. He composed for the ensemble with his usual prolificacy, writing more than ten complete quartets plus single movements and assorted fragments. He then spent a few years focusing on other genres—especially songs—and when he returned to quartet writing in 1820 with this piece, he had made a major leap forward. This work, coming just after the Trout Quintet from the year before, shows a new, mature approach to chamber music with sophisticated themes, dramatic contrasts, and expressive harmonies. However, like many of his earlier efforts, the Quartettsatz (Quartet Movement) is incomplete. He composed the first movement and started the second movement before inexplicably breaking off. Schubert went on to complete three mature quartets, two in 1824 (“Rosamunde” and “Death and the Maiden”) and one in 1826.Schubert wrote the Quartettsatz during a major upswing in his life. His song “Erlk?nig” was performed at a house concert in December 1820 to great acclaim—it would go on to become his first published work and his most famous piece during his lifetime. He composed this movement right after that premiere, possibly thinking he would try to parlay his fame as a song composer to the more ‘serious’ genre of string quartet. Though it was written at one of the few truly happy times in Schubert’s life, the movement doesn’t sound that way—it is driving and tonally unstable. In the opening, a lyrical theme is sandwiched between two fiercely energetic, forceful motives and the C minor tonality is repeatedly undermined by surprising D-flat chords. The energetic string writing continues to the end for a rousing finish worthy of a finale movement.Trio in A minor for Piano, Violin, and Cello, Op. 50 (1881-82)Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky (Kamsko-Votkinsk, 1840 – St. Petersburg, 1893)Tchaikovsky wrote this trio after the passing of Nikolai Rubinstein, the composer’s champion and friend. Rubinstein, who founded and directed the Moscow Conservatory, recruited Tchaikovsky to teach there in 1866. Over the next 15 years, he frequently performed Tchaikovsky’s piano works and conducted many of his orchestral works, including the first four symphonies. Rubinstein was a tireless champion of the composer and Tchaikovsky valued his opinion, though Rubinstein’s initial harsh criticism of the First Piano Concerto in 1874 was a major stumbling block in their relationship. They patched things up and Rubinstein performed the concerto the following year and received the dedication to the Second Piano Concerto just before his death. In total, Tchaikovsky dedicated seven works to Rubinstein. He began this trio after learning of Rubinstein’s passing on March 23, 1881 of tuberculosis and dedicated it ‘In Memory of a Great Artist.’ The premiere took place in Moscow on the one year anniversary of Rubinstein’s death.The trio is in just two expansive movements, allowing Tchaikovsky substantial time to develop his ideas with no need for breaks, contrast, or filler to lighten the mood. The first movement, titled Pezzo elegiaco, begins with the elegiac theme that will dominate the piece, an expression of Tchaikovsky’s grief. When the theme returns after a searching, nostalgic development, it is much slower, less passionate, and more contemplative. By the coda, the theme has denatured into a set of characteristic notes, its rhythmic drive dissolved into acceptance. The second movement is a vast theme and 12 variations that feature the piano, Rubinstein’s instrument. The piano gives a straightforward presentation of the theme and then the variations highlight each instrument in turn, a nod to the balance and symmetry that one would expect from a composer like Mozart. However, starting with variation six, a waltz, things start growing and expanding, spinning out into longer elaborations in more diverse styles. Variation eight is a dark, heavy fugue; variation 10 is a mazurka in the style of Chopin. The final variation is its own substantial section—a triumphant closing in A major as if everything has been resolved. But of course it hasn’t. The elegiac theme from the first movement returns, first riding high over a bravura piano accompaniment, and then dying away accompanied by a funeral march. Death wins in the end, taking a formidable pianist, influential teacher, gregarious Muscovite, and true friend at the age of 45.THE TRIO ?L?GIAQUE AFTER TCHAIKOVSKY:Tchaikovsky’s Piano Trio ‘In Memory of a Great Artist’ inspired a handful of similar tributes from later Russian composers. Most notably, Rachmaninov wrote his Trio élégiaque in D minor to honor Tchaikovsky after his death in 1893, also dedicating it ‘In Memory of a Great Artist.’ Tchaikovsky had encouraged the 20-year-old Rachmaninov, helping to arrange the premiere of his opera Aleko and praising his symphonic poem The Rock. Rachmaninov’s trio was directly inspired by Tchaikovsky’s, with a large-scale first movement and a set of variations for the second movement. Instead of Tchaikovsky’s lengthy coda, Rachmaninov wrote a short but stormy third movement. He completed it in five weeks, saying, “While working on it, all my thoughts, feelings, powers, belonged to it…” Later, Arensky and Shostakovich continued the tradition with piano trios in memory of artists they admired.Notes by Laura Keller, CMS Editorial Manager? Chamber Music Society of Lincoln CenterABOUT THE ARTISTSThe Escher String Quartet has received acclaim for its profound musical insight and rare tonal beauty. A former BBC New Generation Artist, the quartet has performed at the BBC Proms at Cadogan Hall and is a regular guest at Wigmore Hall. In its home town of New York, the ensemble serves as season artists of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, where it has presented the complete Zemlinsky quartet cycle as well as being one of five quartets chosen to collaborate in a complete presentation of Beethoven’s string quartets.The Escher Quartet has made a distinctive impression throughout Europe, with recent debuts including the Amsterdam Concertgebouw, Berlin Konzerthaus, London’s Kings Place, Slovenian Philharmonic Hall, Les Grands Interprètes Geneva, Tel Aviv Museum of Art, and Auditorium du Louvre. The group has appeared at festivals such as the Heidelberg Spring Festival, Budapest’s Franz Liszt Academy, Dublin’s Great Music in Irish Houses, the Ris?r Chamber Music Festival in Norway, the Hong Kong International Chamber Music Festival, and the Perth International Arts Festival in Australia.Alongside its growing European profile, the Escher Quartet continues to flourish in its home country, performing at the Aspen Music Festival, Bowdoin Music Festival, Toronto Summer Music, Chamber Music San Francisco, Music@Menlo, and the Ravinia and Caramoor festivals. The Escher Quartet is also currently in residence at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas, the Tuesday Musical Association in Akron, and the University of Akron.Recordings of the complete Mendelssohn quartets, released on the BIS label in 2015-17, were received with the highest critical acclaim, with comments such as “…eloquent, full-blooded playing... The four players offer a beautiful blend of individuality and accord” (BBC Music Magazine). The Escher’s most recent recording, beloved quartets of Dvo?ák, Borodin, and Tchaikovsky, was met with equal enthusiasm. The quartet has also recorded the complete Zemlinsky String Quartets in two volumes, released on the Naxos label in 2013 and 2014.?Within months of its inception in 2005, the ensemble came to the attention of key musical figures worldwide. Championed by the Emerson Quartet, the Escher Quartet was invited by both Pinchas Zukerman and Itzhak Perlman to be Quartet in Residence at each artist's summer festival: the Young Artists Program at Canada’s National Arts Centre; and the Perlman Chamber Music Program on Shelter Island, NY. The quartet has since become one of the very few chamber ensembles to be awarded the prestigious Avery Fisher Career Grant. The Escher Quartet takes its name from the Dutch graphic artist M.C. Escher, inspired by Escher’s method of interplay between individual components working together to form a whole.?Clive Greensmith has a distinguished career as soloist, chamber musician, and teacher. From 1999 until 2013 he was a member of the world-renowned Tokyo String Quartet, giving over one hundred performances each year in the most prestigious international venues, including New York’s Carnegie Hall, Sydney Opera House, London’s Southbank Centre, Paris Ch?telet, Berlin Philharmonie, Vienna Musikverein, and Suntory Hall in Tokyo. As a soloist, he has performed with the London Symphony Orchestra, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Seoul Philharmonic, and the RAI Orchestra of Rome. He has also performed at Marlboro Music Festival, La Jolla Summerfest, Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, the Ravinia Festival, the Salzburg Festival, Edinburgh Festival, and the Pacific Music Festival in Japan. Over 25 years, he has built up a catalogue of landmark recordings, most notably the complete Beethoven string quartet cycle for Harmonia Mundi with the Tokyo String Quartet. He studied at the Royal Northern College of Music in England with American cellist Donald McCall. He continued his studies at the Cologne Musikhochschule in Germany with Boris Pergamenschikow. After his 15-year residency with the Tokyo String Quartet at Yale University, he was appointed professor at the Colburn School?in Los Angeles in 2014. In 2019, he became the artistic director of the Nevada Chamber Music Festival and was appointed director of chamber music master classes at the Chigiana International Summer Academy in Siena, Italy. Mr. Greensmith is a founding member of the Montrose Trio?with pianist Jon Kimura Parker and violinist Martin Beaver.Acclaimed by critics for his exceptional talent and magnificent tone, American violinist Chad Hoopes has remained a consistent performer with many of the world’s leading orchestras since winning First Prize at the Young Artists Division of the Yehudi Menuhin International Violin Competition. He is a 2017 recipient of Lincoln Center’s Avery Fisher Career Grant. Highlights of past seasons include performances with The Philadelphia Orchestra, Orchestre de Paris, Konzerthausorchester Berlin, and Orchestre National du Capitole de Toulouse for the French premiere of Qigang Chen’s concerto La joie de la souffrance. He has performed with leading orchestras, including the San Francisco, Pittsburgh, Houston, and National Symphonies, as well as the Minnesota, Colorado Music Festival, and National Arts Centre Orchestras. He has additionally performed recitals at the Ravinia Festival, the Tonhalle Zürich, the Louvre, and at Lincoln Center’s Great Performers series in New York City.?His debut recording with the MDR Leipzig Radio Symphony Orchestra under Kristjan J?rvi featured the Mendelssohn and Adams concertos and was enthusiastically received by both press and public. His recording of Bernstein’s Violin Sonata with pianist Wayne Marshall was recently released. Born in Florida, he began his violin studies at the age of three in Minneapolis, and continued his training at the Cleveland Institute of Music. He additionally studied at the Kronberg Academy under the guidance of Professor Ana Chumachenco, who remains his mentor. An alum of CMS’s Bowers Program, he plays the 1991 Samuel Zygmuntowicz, ex Isaac Stern violin.Swiss-born American pianist?Gilles?Vonsattel?is an artist of extraordinary versatility and originality. He is the recipient of an Avery Fisher Career Grant, winner of the Naumburg and Geneva competitions, and was selected for the 2016 Andrew Wolf Chamber Music Award. In recent years, he has made his debut with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal, and San Francisco Symphony while performing recitals and chamber music at Ravinia, Tokyo’s Musashino Hall, Wigmore Hall, Bravo! Vail, Chamber Music Northwest, and Music@Menlo. ?Deeply committed to the performance of contemporary music, he has premiered numerous works both in the United States and Europe and has worked closely with notable composers including J?rg Widmann, Heinz Holliger, and George Benjamin. Recent projects include appearances with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra (Bernstein’s Age of Anxiety),?Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Hamburg (Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue), Beethoven concertos with the Santa Barbara Symphony and Florida Orchestra, as well as multiple appearances with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. An alum of CMS's Bowers Program, Mr. Vonsattel received his bachelor’s degree in political science and economics from Columbia University and his master’s degree from The Juilliard School. He currently makes his home in New York City and serves as a faculty member at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. ................
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