Masterly musicians make Dvorak soar

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Friday, July 21, 2006

Masterly musicians make Dvorak soar

By R.M. CAMPBELL
P-I MUSIC CRITIC

Dvorak's "Piano Quintet in A" is popular fare. It is also a masterpiece.

MUSIC REVIEW

SEATTLE CHAMBER MUSIC FESTIVAL

WHEN / WHERE: Through July 28, Lakeside School, 14050 First Ave. N.E., and Aug. 2-11, Overlake School, 20301 N.E. 108th St., Redmond

TICKETS: $29-$38, with student/senior discounts; 206-283-8088 or www.seattlechambermusic.org.

Wherever there is chamber music, Dvorak's work of glowing, exuberant tunes and good humor is sure to follow. The Seattle Chamber Music Festival, now in its 25th season, was not slow on the uptake. Founding artistic director Toby Saks programmed the work during the festival's second year of business and repeated it nine times since then, including Wednesday night at Lakeside School.

Given the richness of the material and its sunny disposition, it is not a hard piece to be persuasive. Still, it is all the better when the musicians are first-rate and in good form. Both apply to the musicians Wednesday: Stephen Rose and Stefan Milenkovich, violin; Marcus Thompson, viola; Robert deMaine, cello, and Jon Kimura Parker, piano.

These five musicians have nimble fingers and are musically astute. Just as important, for this particular work, they have spirit, one that is ebullient and alive and full of wit. Together, they have a keen sense of ensemble, essential to a successful reading of the work.

There was much to admire individually. Parker has a major role. He is extraordinarily deft, making quick judgments when to push forward and when to hold back. He weaves his line in and around the string quartet with skill and abandon. By himself, he provided an exhilarating musical experience. His colleagues were first-rate. Rose is a familiar figure here and a welcome one. Milenkovich brought vigor and intelligence to the second violin part. Thompson probably has played more festival seasons than anyone else except Saks, and he gave some of the piece's most lyrical moments the gravity and beauty they deserve. DeMaine proved to the equal to the assignment Dvorak gave the cellist.

The rest of concert, understandably, was not at the same level. Reynaldo Hahn's "F-sharp Minor Piano Quintet" is cut from the same romantic mold as the Dvorak, without any folk influences, but it is not a work of genius. It takes more to make it persuasive. Certainly the quintet at hand -- Phillip Levy and Aloysia Friedmann, violin; Ulrich Eichenauer, viola; Amit Peled, cello, and Jeremy Denk, piano -- had virtues but they didn't always add up. Levy was too reticent while Friedmann was not. Thank goodness. Peled supplied the lyric thrust of the piece with his big, handsome sound and musicianship to match. Denk was so careful not to intrude early on, he was almost a non-participant. Then he brightened up and made music.

Brahms' "G Major Violin Sonata" of mellow melancholy is not easy for musical reasons. It is inward, self-involved, soulful. Unfortunately, Anne Akiko Meyers was not up to the task. Her reading lacked imagination and variation. Pianist Adam Neiman was a good partner, providing structure and a flowing line.

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