Dr. Colin Eatock, composer
  • Home
  • About Colin Eatock
  • Composing
  • Catalogue of works
  • Writing about music
  • Eatock Daily (blog)
  • New and upcoming
  • Contact me

Emersons Open Toronto Summer Music

7/25/2014

0 Comments

 
PictureThe Emerson String Quartet.
The Toronto Summer Music festival got off to an impressive start on Tuesday evening (July 22). The Emerson Quartet, in their cream-white summer tuxedos, stepped out before a near-capacity audience at Koerner Hall to present a program according to time-honoured formula: a pair of masterworks from Golden Age of Viennese quartets, flanking a newer, less familiar piece.

Now well into their fourth decade, the Emersons are at the top of the chamber-music heap. And Tuesday’s performance clearly showed why: throughout the concert, their playing was technically masterful and rich in expression. Their sound may not always be as pretty as some other quartets, but they delve deeply into whatever they perform.

The seriousness of the event was underscored by the opening work, Beethoven’s Op. 95 F Minor Quartet, the “Serioso.” From the opening movement, the Emersons made this work into a high-drama narrative – unsettled, and full of “hairpin” dynamics. The second movement featured a more expansive approach to phrasing, and the third was marked by robust outbursts or energy. In the finale, the Emersons returned to the dark, unsettled ebb-and-flow of the opening movement, ending with a splash of sunny warmth.

Benjamin Britten’s Quartet No. 2 is a tough nut for any quartet (or audience) to crack. The Emersons took a dispassionate approach to the sphinx-like opening movement, displaying the piece as a stark, opaque mystery. The second movement was more satisfying – taut and full of tension. The expansive final movement seemed to offer many frustrated hopes for closure before it finally ended (this was Britten’s fault, not the Emersons). However, the movement’s cello solo was a shining moment for cellist Paul Watkins, the newest member of the quartet, who joined the ESQ about a year ago.

To conclude the concert, the Emersons chose a crowd-pleaser, Schubert’s “Death and the Maiden.” This was the highlight of the evening, with the Emersons embracing both the style and the substance of every note. The opening movement was all about thematic contrast, alternately sweet and dark. In the second movement, the ESQ’s playing ran the gamut, form touching simplicity to hammer-and-tongs intensity. Cleverly emphasized syncopations enlivened the third movement, and the finale was edgy and brilliant. In all movements, a fluid interplay of foreground and background ideas gave the performance a sophisticated polish.

The encore – the “Cantabile” movement from Haydn’s Op. 35 No. 5 – was a charming touch.

© Colin Eatock 2014
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Eatock Daily

    I'm a composer based in Toronto – and this is my classical music blog, Eatock Daily.

    When I first started blogging, Eatock Daily was a place to re-post the articles I wrote for Toronto’s Globe and Mail and National Post newspapers, the Houston Chronicle, the Kansas City Star and other publications.

    But now I have stepped back from professional music journalism, and I'm spending more time composing.

    These days, my blog posts are infrequent, and are mostly concerned with my own music. However, I do still occasionally post comments on musical topics, including works I've discovered, enjoyed, and wish to share with others.


    – CE

    Archives

    March 2022
    July 2021
    June 2021
    April 2021
    February 2021
    December 2020
    October 2020
    June 2020
    September 2019
    October 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011

    Index

    Click here for an alphabetical list of blog entries.

    RSS Feed

    Follow colineatock on Twitter
Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.