Texas Classical Review

The Chamber Music Society of Fort Worth hosted members of the Atrium Quartet, along with pianist Jihye Chang and CMSFW artistic director and violinist Gary Levinson for performances of Borodin, Fauré, and Brahms Saturdays afternoon at the Modern Art Museum. 

The ad hoc ensemble consisted of sensitive, consummate chamber players. The program and personnel were both last-minute substitutions for the UK-based Marmen Quartet, one of whose members was unable to obtain a visa to travel to the U.S..

Borodin completed two movements of his Grand Trio for two violins and cello, written in a light conservative style. Atrium violinist Anton Ilyunin and cellist Anna Gorelova were joined by Levinson, whose buttery sound steered the performance. Both violinists were sensitive to the music and well matched. 

Gorelova’s attractive singing tone featured in a significant amount of the thematic material. In the second movement Ilyunin had an equal share of tunes and high passages, played with warmth.

Fauré’s Op. 15 Piano Quartet in C minor is among his earliest chamber pieces. For the performance, Ilyunin and Gorelova were joined by Chang and Atrium violist Dmitry Putulko. The piece began with lush tones in the strings and understated piano accompaniment. 

Chang’s piano playing was highly sensitive throughout the concert, achieving near perfect balance. However, in the Fauré the ensemble occasionally covered the cello. Matched styles and articulations betrayed the fact that three of the four musicians play together regularly.

Pizzicato strings in the Scherzo were clean and clear, while Chang’s light touch kept the movement buoyant and playful. The middle section calls for muted strings, which produced a warm, rich timbre. In the third movement, solo passages migrated among all the instruments, followed by sustained evocative harmonies in the strings under sparkling piano lines.

The bubbly motion of the finale allowed the ensemble to effectively bring out all of its rhythmic vibrancy, along with Ilyunin’s elegant singing lines.

Like that of Fauré, Brahms’ Piano Quartet in G minor (Op. 25) is his first in the genre and his most popular. After a broken cello string caused a restart, the first movement got underway with the piano introduction and soon featured Gorelova in a brief sonorous solo. Prominent solo viola passages enabled Putulko’s majestic tone to be heard, along with crisp, well-articulated dialogs with Ilyunin and others. 

All of Chang’s shades and dynamics were well chosen, whether when supporting or in the foreground. Ilyunin led the work tastefully and with a variety of colors, never domineering.

Gorelova was primarily responsible for maintaining the steady eighth-note pulse in the Intermezzo. Here the group played with tasteful propulsion, including a handful of tempo changes. Ilyunin’s sweet tone was most cantabile during the Andante third movement, which also included Chang’s assured piano. 

The “Rondo alla Zingarese” gypsy-style finale was played with raw energy, calling for a variety of styles and articulations. Particularly effective were the precise pizzicato accompaniments to the swift piano solos. The ensemble held the lopsided phrases together tightly, leading up to the brilliant molto presto ending.

With just two weeks’ notice to find players and create a new program from scratch, Levinson and the CMSFW are to be commended for quickly harnessing the musicianship and depth of talent needed for a successful performance of such profound musical works.

The Chamber Music Society of Fort Worth’s next concert takes place April 12. The program includes works for piano and strings by Beach, Kodály, and Korngold. cmsfw.org.