Cherry Street Music’s “Boston Brilliance” in the hands of Artistic Director Allison Eldredge, cello; Alexander Velinzon, violin; Cathy Basrak, viola; and Max Levinson, piano at the Allen Center in Newton on Sunday began with Mozart’s Duo in G Major, K. 423 for Violin and Viola. In the opening, Velinzon and Basrak imitated one another in rapid scales and arpeggios, counterpoint being key to the outset. At m. 27, marked dolce, a change of mood occurs with both instruments alternating on a sweet and lyrical theme. While the composition showcases each instrument’s strengths, egalitarian distribution of thematic and harmonic roles is characteristic of all three movements. Velinzon and Basrak engaged in a lively give and take.
Fun with a touch of sarcasm pervaded movement 2, Allegro, from Shostakovich’s Cello Sonata in D Minor. Eldrege played the two-note slur that forms the core motif of the piece with gusto while Levinson’s sharp and percussive staccato notes provided a steady pulse. Dispersed throughout are wonderful special effects: glissandi in both instruments, harmonics and wildly difficult double and triple stops on the cello. The movement ends abruptly on an A minor chord. A lush and enjoyable song from Camelot, “I Loved You Once in Silence,” followed.
Eldredge stated that she chose Romance by Amy Beach partly because Beach, as a Boston composer, fulfilled the recital’s mandate “Boston Brilliance.” The composition also met Eldredge’s concept of how love should be portrayed musically. And indeed, the stepwise melody which ends in a rising third evokes intimacy. Levinson and Eldredge’s responsiveness to one another’s playing communicated warmth and tenderness. Eldredge neglected to mention, however, that the work was written for violin and piano. The program also did not mention the original instrumentation, nor was the transcriber named.
An enjoyable Q and A ensued, covering a range of topics, including which composer(s) Levinson would like to share a drink with and the location of Rachmaninoff’s grave.
The Schumann Piano Quartet opens, Sostenuto, with all strings on an E flat. The piano strikes a G, but as the sound of the strings fade, it moves to e flat. We then hear the four notes that are the basis of the first movement’s main theme. The quartet played these crucial measures with mystery and reverence. Levinson’s octaves seemed to float. Three rising notes in the violin, played brightly and clearly by Velinzon added an air of questioning to the final measure of the eight-measure introduction. The quartet then breaks into an Allegro non troppo with the strings reasserting the four-note phrase while the piano answers with a descending scale. The episode’s energy comes from the rhythmic precision of the strings and the flow of the piano. A lyrical moment returns with the cello playing the main theme accompanied by chords from the piano. The gorgeous tone of Eldredge’s cello sang out. Thus, within the first few moments, the audience is enveloped in a variety of moods, textures and sounds. A second theme consisting of an ascending minor scale is played first in the piano then exchanged among instruments. The continuous yet varied flow ultimately derives from a small number of musical ideas. This, plus the driving rhythm and motivic clarity which he payers maintained, kept the listener oriented and engaged. The movement ends with a triumphant statement of the four-note theme heard at the outset.
The Scherzo, recalls Mendelssohn’s Overture to A Midsummer Night’s Dream (written 16 years earlier). The players conveyed rhythmic exactitude and precise articulation through an unyielding sense of motion. Two lyrical trios broke the tension and excitement. At times, the piano overpowered the strings, ultimately a minor shortcoming in view of the movement’s technical demands.
A soaring aria for the cello starts the Andante Cantabile. The violin and viola enter in counterpoint, an unusual treatment for a lyrical theme with fairly large leaps. (JS Bach would have been impressed). This occurs over a rhythmically displaced motif in the piano. The performers put across all elements convincingly. A middle section, written in a chorale-like style, lends solemnity. The foursome’s rich, blended sound bore witness one more time to their versatility. One final cello solo ushers in the coda, in which we hear a new theme recalling the tolling of bells. Rising and falling scales end the stunningly multifaceted movement.
Using a typical fugue subject, the final movement opens with energy and buoyance. Counterpoint dominates, although lyrical moments appear throughout. Brilliance and expression marked the interplay. With the violin and cello in contrary motion on an accelerating scale, a final assertion of E flat comes from the tutti. What a thrilling end to a marvelous concert.