Mainstage Chamber Concert 3: Thursday, July 21, 2022 - 7:30 PM, Arkell Pavilion, SVAC
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (b. Austria | d. Austria; 1756 – 1791)
Divertimento in E-flat Major for String Trio, K. 563 (composed 1789)
Divertimenti, or musical diversions, served as light fare to entertain royal attendees at court. They were usually scored for diverse instruments, relied upon popular dance forms, and were intended as easy listening. As a general rule, they were not lengthy compositions; yet this Divertimento clocks in as the longest chamber music work Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart ever composed (45 minutes), and it comprises six movements played by a sparse group of instruments: violin, viola, and cello.
The result is a masterpiece of monumental proportion that has endured as one of the most rewarding (and difficult to play!) of Mozart’s extensive body of work. The movements alternate in speed and style, the faster movements channeling courtly grace, and the slower movements furnishing ample space for emotional expressiveness. The fourth movement – marked Andante – is an extensive theme and variations; hence it is counterbalanced by two lighthearted minuet movements that are substantially shorter. The delightful finale never ceases to charm listeners, as it is based on a recurring theme that is eminently singable and just about impossible to forget.
Lowell Liebermann (b. United States; 1961 – Present)
Piano Trio No. 3, Op. 122 (composed 2012)
Commissioned by the Arizona Friends of Chamber Music and premiered by Trio Solisti in 2013, this work conveys a stark contrast between its two distinct movements, the first of which is extremely slow and ethereal, the second of which is a diabolical ride. The first movement begins with quiet chords in the piano that amble so slowly as to seem devoid of form or meter. The strings enter in single file, the violin singing a lamenting tune subsequently taken up by the cello. As the strings coalesce, the piano part morphs into a celestial-sounding texture that furnishes a moody backdrop upon which the strings converse. Lowell Liebermann alternates phases of sensuous movement with cosmic stillness before bringing the movement to a halt, and then the second movement enters without preamble. Tenuous at first, it grows inexorably in speed and volume, breaking all pretense of civility and rocketing toward a feral conclusion.
Antonín Dvořák (b. Czechia | d. Czechia; 1841-1904)
Piano Quartet No 2 in E-flat Major, Op. 87 (composed 1889)
At the root of Antonín Dvořák’s style is an unmistakable Bohemian identity, and this popular piano quartet masterfully fuses Czech motives with traditional classical elements. The form is prototypical, consisting of a sonata-form first movement, slow second movement, third movement scherzo, and an exciting finale. The instruments are treated equitably, each contributing its voice with equal prominence, and the work is rife with complex contrapuntal exchanges, rigorous motivic development, and virtuosity.
Where this quartet truly distinguishes itself is in the arena of melody and harmony, for which Dvořák possessed an inimitable gift. Each movement unspools one melodic treasure after another, some accompanied by rollicking dance rhythms and others sung operatically with aching tenderness. Dvořák’s harmonic modulations are ingenious, transferring the music from mundane territories to astonishing exotic landscapes. The first movement – confident in bearing – grabs the listener’s attention from the get-go with angular dance rhythms and extreme dynamic contrasts. The emotional epicenter of the work lies within the exquisite second movement, which begins with a cello melody that begets a series of heart-wrenching exchanges among the instruments. Dvořák takes plenty of time developing the movement, and through it he depicts a dreamscape in which the listener might hope to linger indefinitely. He dispels that reverie with a charming, lighthearted scherzo movement, which is followed by a finale that begins sternly but eventually blazes with unfettered joy.