South Mountain Concerts, Pittsfield, MA
October 13, 2019
by Michael J. Moran
All the ingredients for chamber music heaven came together
in this concert: arguably the finest string quartet now before the public;
three cornerstones of the string quartet repertoire over three centuries; and
ideal acoustics in a storied venue.
Formed in 1976 and named after American writer Ralph Waldo
Emerson, three of the quartet’s founders are still members: violinists Eugene
Drucker and Philip Setzer, who alternate first and second chairs, and violist
Lawrence Dutton. In 2013 founding cellist David Finckel was succeeded by Paul
Watkins, to whom the program notes attribute “a profound effect” on the
ensemble, infusing it “with a warm, rich tone and a palpable joy in the
collaborative process.”
The concert opened with first violinist Setzer leading a
relaxed performance of Mozart’s late (1789) Quartet in D Major, K. 575. An
arrestingly gentle opening “Allegretto” set the stage for a lyrical “Andante,”
a lively “Menuetto” and trio, and a serene “Allegretto” finale. The Emersons’
trademark technical precision was enhanced by a sweet and singing sound.
Moving ahead to a century later (1878), the program’s first
half ended with a glowing account of Dvorak’s Quartet in E-flat Major, Op. 51
with Drucker as first violinist. A sunny opening “Allegro ma non troppo”
precedes a melancholy “Dumka,” or Slavic lament, a graceful “Romanza,” and a
rousing “Allegro assai” finale, partly in the rhythm of a fast Czech dance
called the skocna. The players captured the full range of the quartet’s
shifting moods with unerring accuracy.
Intermission was followed by a gripping rendition, with
Setzer back in the first violin chair, of Shostakovich’s Quartet No. 5, in
B-flat Major, Op. 92. Though written in 1951, it was not performed until after
the death of Stalin in 1953. Selzer asked the audience to imagine the quartet’s
effect on its first listeners, after a period when Shostakovich and other
Soviet artists were routinely persecuted for their work. The Emersons played
the three continuous movements – an earthy “Allegro,” a haunting “Andante,” and
a stark “Moderato” – with eerie intensity.
The first season in the second century of this iconic
chamber music series founded in 1918 by Elizabeth Sprague Coolidge could not
have ended on a higher note.