Chamber festival rolls on with style and flair

The Seattle Chamber Music Festival launched its fourth week Monday night with a program of Ives, Milhaud, Mozart and Arensky that was as deft at the musicians reading the music.

One does not necessarily put Ives and Milhaud in the same room, but two works of theirs, for violin, clarinet and piano, were coupled as an opening gambit. Ives' Largo is remarkably sweet for the iconoclastic composer -- no jokes and none of his famous setups. However, what made the piece effective was its companion, Milhaud's "Le Voyageur sans bagages," possessing all the charm and wit and freshness the French composer could summon.

In less skilled hands, these two pieces might appear ordinary and lack appeal, but not with violinist Stefan Jackiw, clarinetist Alexander Fiterstein and pianist Jeremy Denk. Jackiw and Fiterstein are new to the festival this season, and what an addition they are, with their innate musical profiles and fluent techniques. Denk is a well-known artist at the festival, and he rarely fails to be a good colleague, yet never lacks for his own ideas.

The great moment of the night came in the middle with Mozart's Viola Quintet (K. 515). Adding the second viola to the usual string quartet, this quintet has the most astonishing range of expression and depth of character. It is long and free-flowing, coupling sensibilities of both the orchestra and chamber music. Boldness of gesture is allied with equivocation, the conventional with the unconventional, darkness with light. Written the same year as "Don Giovanni," the C Major Quintet is a masterpiece of design and execution.

For a group of musicians, singularly talented, who have never played together previously, the quintet played with a panache and uniformity of spirit that was breathtaking in scope. They provided the kind of rare ride for the audience in which the best music is performed by the best musicians. It does not get any better than this.

Daniela Shtereva, new to the festival, played first violin with the kind of musicianship aligned with virtuosity that enriches the best from the music and her colleagues. As an example of luxury casting, Jackiw was second violin. Joshua Roman, the Seattle Symphony's new principal cellist in his festival debut this summer, played with technical clarity, exuberance and attention to detail. Richard O'Neill and Aloysia Friedmann were the violists. O'Neill, as first, had the larger part, to which he devoted considerable taste, flair and resonant tone.

The evening ended with Arensky's Piano Trio in D Minor. After the Ives, Milhaud and Mozart, it seemed somewhat anticlimactic. No fault with those in charge. Nicola Benedetti, the third extraordinary violinist performing Monday night and also new to the festival, played with heated expression as well as a deeply felt lyrical style, as did cellist Amit Peled and pianist Adam Neiman. They were admired by the audience, with good reason.

More than halfway through its 26th season, the festival is enjoying an unparalleled year of artistic success aligned with full houses. There was not an empty seat Monday, with people left at the box office hoping unsuccessfully to secure a ticket. Performances Wednesday and Friday nights also are sold out.