Shostakovich Quartet: Living Up to its Name
For The Love of Music
Sunday, July 30, Christ Church Cathedral, Ottawa Chamber Music Festival.
Shostakovich Quartet: Andrey Shishlov, violin, Sergey Pishchugin, violin,
Alexander Galkovsy, viola, Alexander Korchagin, violoncello.
A concert that was simply called "Chamber Music of Russia" may well turn out
to be one of the greatest performances of this Ottawa Chamber Music
Festival. Fortunately, the understatement did not deter people from filling
the cavernous Christ Church Cathedral to capacity to partake in a
performance by the best that Russia has to offer: the Shostakovich Quartet.
Named for one of the greatest composers to have come out of the 20th
century, this quartet has a great deal to live up to, and they succeed at it
brilliantly.
The concert took place in a trap of sorts, for the last string quartet that
appeared in Christ Church Cathedral did not fare all that well. That was not
an issue for this ensemble of fine musicians who seemed oblivious to the
acoustical deficits of the venue. Their sound, from the beginning of the
performance, was never anything less than magnificent. There were only three
works on this program, chosen to represent an entire culture, which of
course is an impossible task, but their choices were backed up by a second
concert of more contemporary, and lesser-known Russian composers, to be
performed on the 31st of July, at St. Andrew's Church.
The first selection came from Alexander Glazunov (1865-1936) who was a
student of Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov and was admired by Balakirev who
conducted his First Symphony. Glazunov played an interesting role within
Russian music as he took the rich Russian Nationalism of Borodin and
successfully reconciled them with Europeanism. Although he was looked at as
being mostly old fashioned, the Shostakovich Quartet gave a very persuasive
performance of his Prelude and Fugue in D minor (from Les vendredis). From
the opening notes of the Prelude it was apparent that this was not just
Glazunov: this was Glazunov played by people who understood it as only the
Shostakovich could. There were some moments in the Prelude when the tone of
violoncellist Alexander Korchagin simply engulfed the Cathedral with the
richness of its sound.
The contrapuntal playing in the Fugue was brilliant, and afforded the
audience an opportunity to appreciate the especially fine tone of the
individual players as they made their contributions in turn. The opening
statement by the second violinist, which was answered by the violist was
simply superb. The control of the dynamics by this ensemble is something
that I have not heard since 1988, at a concert of a string quartet in
Sudbury. The effect is of the sound moving in a column. When the
Shostakovich Quartet executes a crescendo, their volume increases so
perfectly it is like seeing the sound rise from the ground up. It takes
incredible control and precision as an ensemble, but it can be done: but
very few ensembles can do it. Glazunov has never sounded better, nor has he
likely had better ambassadors.
The second work on this concert was by the most familiar of the modern
Russian composers, Dmitri Shostakovich (1906-1975). It is in the music of
Shostakovich that the battle of adversity was waged between the artist and
the State on a tight-rope, often to the extant that his life was in peril,
but in the end his music survived to testify better than his words could of
his strength of spirit, and of his artistic integrity. His String Quartet
No. 3 in F major, Opus 73 was composed in 1946, the year after his Ninth
Symphony. It is a serious work that is full of various qualities, ranging
from humour to irony and darkness, as Shostakovich reflected on the post-war
state of the Soviet Union.
The Shostakovich Quartet demonstrated in their performance that they deeply
identify with this music and that they were able to produce the necessary
emotional intensity to give the work a performance that fully exploited the
richness of the score. The first movement was highly impassioned and
captured the spirit of the music perfectly. The second movement opens with a
solo line played by the viola, in this case Alexander Galkovsy, who has an
imposing presence and a viola tone that filled the Cathedral with its superb
quality. First violinist Andrey Shishlov played with tremendous passion and
it was easy to see, and hear that this quartet takes its namesake seriously.
The third movement of the quartet was an example of the tight ensemble
playing that this group is capable of, but it was the fourth movement,
Adagio, that string quartets dream about: to be able to play with such
exquisite tone and musicality and have an ensemble that is so interlocked
with each other. This is something that only years of experience and
thousands of hours of work can accomplish, plus remarkable talent. The final
movement displayed yet another element of the Shostakovich Quartet's
abilities: there was a fabulous dancing quality to their sound that never
had a lapse to it, nor did the energy of the performance ever let up. It was
an exhilarating performance that was gripping from the first to the last
notes and the ending, played on the high harmonics by first violinist
Alexander Shishlov, were absolutely breathtaking. Shostakovich would
certainly have not minded the use of his name in this performance.
The final work on this amazing program was by Alexander Borodin (1833-1887),
who achieved quite a bit of success for himself as a medical doctor and
researcher. But music was a passion he could not suppress and his
compositions have survived the test of time. His String Quartet No. 2 in D
major is a relatively late work, having been composed in 1881. It is an
example of pure lyricism, but in the wrong hands it can easily turn into a
piece of music that can leave a dreadful after-taste for having been
overdone. Such was definitely not the case with this performance.
It would be wrong to say that only Russians can play Russian music properly,
for that would be like saying only Germans could play Bach. It is obviously
not true. But, after hearing this concert, which was more of an experience
than a concert, that was definitely an impression that one could be left
with. This quartet has the understanding to play the music in just the right
way that you cannot help but think that it is the right way for it to be
played. It was, simply put, a brilliant performance, that would be very
difficult to surpass.
There is an absolutely gorgeous opening solo violoncello line from Alexander
Korchagin in the third movement, Notturno, while the second violinist,
Sergey Pishchugin and violist Alexander Galkovsy provide a beautiful
accompaniment. When violinist Andrey Shishlov responded with his melodic
line it was the culmination of the performance: the height of expressive
playing without being melodramatic. The Finale was magnificent. The quality
and intensity of the Shostakovich Quartet does not let up at all throughout
their performance, and it is something of a phenomenon to behold as the
musicians are seemingly possessed by the score, until the decay of the final
note.
This performance will be remembered for years to come, and the Ottawa
Chamber Music Festival must be applauded for, once again, bringing such fine
ensembles to what truly is the best chamber music festival in the world. Oh,
and that string quartet I heard back in Sudbury in 1988. . . it was the
Shostakovich Quartet.
This review will be located at:
http://members.home.net/ftlom/OCMFMM10.HTM
Peter Amsel is an Ottawa based
composer and writer.
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