F. Mendelssohn: String Quartet No. 1 in E-flat Major, op. 12
Born in 1809 in Hamburg, German composer Felix Mendelssohn remains one of the most gifted prodigies in Western music history. Fortunately for Mendelssohn, his wealthy family spared nothing to foster his musical talents early on, resulting in a series of enduring masterpieces completed when he was still in his youth, including his string octet, three piano quartets, the first viola quintet, and the first two string quartets, at a very early age.
His opus 12, the first of his published string quartets, was completed in 1829 at the age of 20. Filled with imagination and even operatic scope, this quartet reveals the composer’s desire to push the boundaries of the genre in both expression and form. The first movement, Adagio non troppo begins with a slow introduction with the strings each taking turns, urging in a three-note motif. A lyrical, flowing melody takes over, relaxed at first but always surging before declining again. Variants of the theme emerge, and the quartet fully embraces Mendelssohn’s refined yet unabashed expressivity. With soaring lyricism, the mood shifts yet again, offering the first violin rhapsodic outbursts of declamatory broodiness, subverting a listener’s expectations around every corner before concluding with graceful acceptance.
The ensuing Canzonetta. Allegretto bears the title of an Italian secular song originating back in 1560. Set in duple metre, here Mendelssohn takes liberty and eschews the customary triple metre that would typically be found in the inner movements of a quartet or other four-movement works at the time. Charming and playful, the main tune is hushed and contained, punctuated by plucked strings and short, bouncing bow strokes. The central section offers a fleeting motif, almost evoking the flutter of wings or playful elves prancing. With the return of the opening theme, the movement closes with the same veiled jest that began it with the most subtle of flourishes.
With the Andante espressivo, Mendelssohn explores his operatic ideas with abandon. The violin begins with a heartfelt and earnest aria that unfolds like a stream of consciousness, gaining emotional range with even more figurative turns of phrases. Building to a series of climaxes, the violin is indicated explicitly by the composer to play con fuoco (or “with fire”). Despite its brevity, the movement is certainly not lacking emotionality or depth; as the impassioned mood quiets down, Mendelssohn proffers a calm and tender conclusion imbued with peace.
Barely does the final note die away, the two opening chords of Molto allegro e vivace in the finale jolt listeners out of the tranquillity that was just lingering in the air. Scurrying figurations lead into episodes of turbulent, dramatic, rhythmically-drive tension and utilise the rhythm to almost unsettle or disrupt senses of ease or balance. In the centre of the movement, themes from the opening movement slowly return amidst the pressing insistence of the finale. A solo violin outburst evokes polar opposite to the emotionality of the previous movement, before the theme is further reshaped, leading to a much more introverted violin solo. The movement, seemingly finding solace amidst turmoil, concludes with a series of rising and falling figurations by the violin before quieting down into three, calming chords.
Wang Jianmin: Capriccio on a Xinjiang Theme for Guzheng Solo
A native of Wuxi, Jiangsu, Chinese composer Wang Jianmin came into prominence during the 1980s, when many of his compositions received awards and accolades, with many more to come throughout his respected career. Born in 1956, Wang Jianmin – in addition to holding professorships – has served on countless musical associations, including as the vice-president of the Seventh Council of the Chinese National Orchestra Society, the International Art Education Federation, and dean of the School of Music of Nanjing University of the Arts. A prolific composer, Wang Jianmin’s output contributed greatly to the growth of the national instrumental music tradition.
Chinese instruments and compositions written for them remain a powerful intersection between national music and other techniques, a synthesis of East and West and that of tradition and modernity. The guzheng, or a plucked zither, dates back to the Qin dynasty, and its strings would have originally been made with silk. In modern times, these strings are often made of nylon with steel coating, after going through transitional phases when steel or brass wires were utilised, pending particular genres and musical demands and preferences. The instrument’s evolution, including an increased number of strings, offers more sound all the while capturing its alluring timbre.
Evidenced in Wang Jianmin’s Capriccio on a Xinjiang Theme, the resonance of just the first few plucked gestures reveals the range and depth of the guzheng. Encapsulating the spirit of Xinjiang, Wang Jianmin’s Capriccio offers a vast array of sounds and musical imageries. The jingles of distant bells, winds blowing by, and the poignancy of a scarf fluttering in the wind are all captured to set the scene for the main body of the work. The diversity of techniques required, from subtle and delicate, virtuosity, and melodic plucking to even percussive pounding, offer many transformations of the main theme. Traversing dramatic highs and fragile lows while utilising every inch of the guzheng, Capriccio’s rapid-fire coda leads to a series of brilliant flourishes before concluding with three decisive chords.
F. Devienne: Quartet for Bassoon and Strings in G Minor, op. 73, no. 3
Composer François Devienne, born in 1759, grew up in Joinville, France, as the youngest of 14 children. After growing up as a choirboy, he moved to Paris and quickly became a sought-after flute and bassoon player in the city, performing in numerous ensembles, even performing his own flute and bassoon concertos as soloist. Regarded as France’s most celebrated flute and bassoon virtuoso, Devienne also composed a vast oeuvre of instrumental works and even comic operas, earning the title of “Mozart of the Flute” amongst many peers and successors.
Devienne’s Quartet for Bassoon and Strings was published in 1800 and is scored for bassoon, violin, viola and cello. His writing is affable, imbued with singing melodies and of course highlighting the tonal essence the bassoon offers. Allegro con espressione begins with a singing bassoon leading the strings into the musical fold. The melody becomes increasingly elaborate with the bassoon in charge most of the time, with the strings either offering harmonic support or following suit in any iterations of the theme. After a moody central section, the return of the main theme is further enhanced with more dazzling bassoon filigree without ever losing the sense of charm and grace.
In Adagio, the bassoon once again leads the ensemble in an aria-like theme with the strings accompanying with subtle pulsations in the violin and viola atop plucked cello. The aria suffers a turn for the dramatic, this time allowing the strings the spotlight. The bassoon returns with the opening theme, decorating this second iteration with florid ornaments before a gradual slowing down of tempo to signal the end of this amiable episode.
An elegant Rondo ensues, with the bassoon and strings often engaging in affable yet virtuosic gestures. The alluring tune makes its rounds across instruments, sometimes solo, in pairs, trios or tutti, and somehow always just a little different than the previous utterance. The clever turns of phrase, buoyed by grace and earnestness, end with a brilliant dash to the end.
Á. Piazzolla / Arr. J. Bragato: The Four Seasons of Buenos Aires, arr. for Piano Trio
Born in 1921, Argentinian composer Ástor Piazzolla was heavily influenced by jazz, Argentinian tango, traditional musical structures, and the sounds and harmonies of 20th-century Western music. A virtuoso on the bandoneón, an accordion-like folk instrument common in Latin America, Piazzolla often composed for his own performances with various folk and classically-trained ensembles.
Piazzolla’s The Four Seasons of Buenos Aires inspires direct parallel to Antonio Vivaldi’s ever-popular The Four Seasons, a set of programmatic concerti for violin and orchestra that musically evoke the spirit of the changing seasons. However, with centuries separating the composers, Piazzolla originally created each of his Four Seasons as independent pieces for his folk chamber ensemble. First completing Verano Porteño (“Summer in Buenos Aires”) in 1965 to accompany a play, Piazzolla wrote three more tangos in the following year to complete his version of Four Seasons.
The Four Seasons, in its original form, features violin, electric guitar, piano, bass and bandoneón – a classic tango ensemble combination. José Bragato’s version for piano trio was likely arranged shortly after Piazzolla completed the set. Further iterations of Piazzolla’s Four Seasons have been arranged for woodwind quintet, cellos and double bass, and countless other iterations for classical instruments have surfaced since, ranging from solo piano to chamber orchestra with soloist and chorus.
Bragato was born in 1915; the Italian-born Argentine grew up in a family of musicians who left the country to settle in Argentina in 1927. He continued his piano training that was started in Italy but also took up the cello. Alongside his bourgeoning career playing classical music, Bragato also played in several tango and jazz bands all the while taking post at the famed Teatro Colón, serving as the opera’s principal cellist. When he started conducting, the musician also began arranging tunes for various radio stations. After Bragato’s years playing cello in Piazzolla’s ensembles, Piazzolla honoured his close friend with one of his tangos, naming it Bragatissimo.
Though each of Vivaldi’s seasons feature three contrasting movements, Piazzolla’s interpretation of the seasons only features one movement per season. However, each seasonal movement boasts varied moods, incorporating the naturally-occurring sound inspirations of any given time of the year along with the emotionality of lives lived. Since each season is completely separate, performers are free to order the movements as they wish. Unlike Vivaldi, Piazzolla did not include descriptive poetry accompanying each of his seasons, inviting the imagination of listeners to fully immerse in the Buenos Aires life.
Primavera (Spring) opens with a rhythmically-driven violin line with plucked cello accompaniment and sparse piano. Eventually all three instruments take up the jagged theme in a fiery fugue before violin and cello merge to highlight the main theme. A lamenting cello solo reaches to the highest register of the instrument before the violin rejoins. Not long after, the energetic pulse returns and concludes Primavera with vigour and flare.
Verano (Summer) begins with a plodding piano solo accompanied by the cello slapping the side of the wooden instrument. Repeated two-note gestures expand organically, and the quiet mood of a contrasting section, with the wistful violin and then cello, captures a certain slow pace of life in the city. Rough strikes against the strings of the instruments break the relaxed disposition and offer percussive power and energy. Abundant with countless, shifting atmospheres, Verano ends with energy with a glorious flourish on the piano.
A brooding piano introduction in Otoño (Autumn) is quickly joined by the strings, leading to yet another forlorn cello solo, repeating the weeping gestures over and again. The violin takes its turn with the falling-leaf theme, offering a burnished perspective and reflecting on memories of years past. The spell is suddenly broken, as if the percolating pulse of Buenos Aires finally breaks through the melancholy.
Violin and cello introduce the opening theme of Invierno (Winter) in unison, before vigorous chords take hold. A piano cadenza, questioning and exploring, finds the main theme for itself with solitude and introspection. Again, the mood shifts are drastic, this time with repeated, punctuated chords that gradually lose its energy before transforming into yet another mournful cello solo later joined by the violin. The two strings once again play in unison, offering depth and gravitas to the main theme. As with other seasons, the constant change of moods – from the lively and robust – always find a way to yet another beautifully crafted tune. Nostalgic with exquisite turns of phrase, the final theme closes the season with great poignancy and quietude.
By Jules Lai