2015 marks the 50th anniversary of the Sir Zelman Cowan School of Music and to celebrate this significant anniversary an impressive series of some 30 concerts has been curated by SZCSOM and the Monash Academy of Performing Arts (MAPA). The milestone is a salutation of achievement, innovation and an internationally distinguished alumni.
The series commenced on Sunday with a recital by the Blackwood Ensemble, a chamber ensemble of mixed forces comprising both students and faculty, largely focused on Viennese Classical repertoire. Based on this performance the SZCSOM is ‘riding high’ in this anniversary year with a very high standard of student musicians and a faculty that surely would be the envy of any conservatorium in Australia.
Mozart’s String Quintet in C, K515 was written in 1787 when the composer was experiencing substantial financial difficulties. He interrupted the composition of Don Giovanni to see what music he could produce which would be popular and easily saleable. This work, a string quartet with the addition of a second viola, in fact provided little financial relief possibly because its technical difficulties and interpretive complexity surely exceeded the expectations of Viennese amateur performance making; indeed, it is now recognised as one of Mozart’s greatest works for chamber ensemble.
Next in the program came a work by the Italian/Austrian composer, Ferdinand Paer. Beatus Vir sets the text of Psalm 112 for keyboard, clarinet and soprano. Carolina Biasoli’s clear and shining-bright voice could not be heard to its best advantage in the close acoustic of the Salon, however, her technical skill was apparent. Her instrumental accompaniment was commendably enhanced by the beautifully shaped phrasing of David Griffiths on clarinet.
Mozart’s music returned to the stage for Parto, ma tu ben mio from his late opera, La clemenza di Tito. Soprano, Merylyn Quaife gave a sincere and warmly mature reading of this famous aria with sensitive and intelligent accompaniment, particularly by pianist, Anthony Barnhill. The performance concluded with a rare hearing of twentieth-century Armenian/Soviet composer, Alexander Arutiunian’s Suite for violin, clarinet and piano commissioned by the American Verdehr Trio in 1992. Inevitably compared to Shostakovich in style the work opens with a bleak landscape (Introduction) which leads to a flippant and brief Scherzo. The slow Dialog between violin and clarinet was omitted for this performance before the Finale rounded things up with a kind of diabolical tango. Faculty member Tamara Smolyar brought everything imaginatively possible from the score to light and, in the Finale there was playing by young clarinettist, Constantine Karatenislis that approached brilliance.
This ensemble, comprised of two members of faculty and three students, proves that one of the best ways to learn the subtleties and nuances of chamber music is to play alongside seasoned professionals. The performance standard was such that it would be inappropriate to single out any individual performer as the achievement was high. A keen understanding of the form, rhetoric and style of the Classical period was evident throughout.
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Blackwood Ensemble
Anthony Barnhill, piano, Carolina Biasoli, soprano, Andrew Chong, viola, Kenji Fujimura, piano, David Griffiths, clarinet, Lisa Grosman, viola, Constantine Karatenislis, clarinet, Merlyn Quaife, soprano, Elizabeth Sellers, violin, Luke Severn, cello, Tamara Smolyar, piano, Daniel Tan, violin, Adam Weitzer, clarinet
Melbourne Recital Centre, Salon
Sunday, 23 August, 2015
