Aston Magna Festival, Great Barrington,
MA
June 23, 2018
by Barbara Stroup
Coolness: weather - and performance. On
an unseasonal cool afternoon, a stellar ensemble assembled by Music
Director Daniel Stepner presented a performance that mixed old and
new, reeds and strings, vocal and plucked sounds in a pleasing tour
of music from 1685 to 2018. Including a world premier by a living
composer on a program of Bach, Handel and Telemann put all four
composers in the best possible company, surely a delight to the
youthful Alex Burtzos, on hand for this first performance of his
work.
Lacking, however, was that warm back
and forth among the players that audiences appreciate seeing, as the
musical line is traded from one instrument to the next. Rare was the
glance or eye contact and minimal was the facial hint or exhibition
of delight in the beauty of the sound they were making. And beautiful
(but cool) perfection it was.
The program began with a familiar
Brandenburg Concerto, played at a clipping along pace, and
highlighting the accomplishments of Michael Sponseller in a
breathtaking harpsichord cadenza, played on a double manual
instrument. The robust, even sounds of the baroque bassoon were
featured in the next program piece, a trio sonata by Telemann. Andrew
Schwartz, brought a smooth clear tone to the program on his
instrument, complementing Julie Leven’s baroque violin which held
its own. The combination was exquisite.
Burtzos’ world premier – “The
Hourglass Equation” – closed the first half of the program.
Beginning and ending with long dissonant tones from the bassoon,
flute and violin, it contained a brief, more lyrical section,
challenging both the audience and the instrumentalists throughout
with its very 20th century vibe.
Dominique Labelle |
Dominique Labelle joined the
instruments after intermission as the ensemble returned to the 18th
century with two Handel arias and a Bach cantata. What riches! Her
soprano voice amply filled the hall and blended aptly with the
instrumental sound. Particularly moving was the use of diminuendo and
ritardando in the “Fall asleep” section of Aria No. 3. One needed
the excellent program notes by Joseph Orchard to place the piece in
the context for which Bach composed it, as the lyric expressed
delight in death and longing for the “cool soil of earth.”
The ensemble was also supported by the
sound of Christopher Krueger’s baroque flute throughout much of the
program. Loretta O’Sullivan’s solid continuo is always a delight,
and she was joined by Anne Trout’s violone to further enhance the
bassline throughout most of the program. Aston Magna continues to
provide solid programming and excellence in performance to the summer
festival season in the Berkshires.