PRESS REVIEWS

The Many Faces of Romanticism

   "Some orchestral musicians are so skilled and influential that their names go into the history books.

   In the late 18th century, clarinetist Anton Stadler so impressed Mozart with his playing that the composer created a series of masterpieces for him. A century later, clarinetist Richard Mühlfeld had the same effect on Brahms, who came out of retirement to write another series of masterpieces.

   It’s too early to tell whether clarinetist Franklin Cohen will have a history-worthy effect, but he certainly was impressive in a program for the Chamber Music Society of Fort Worth on Saturday afternoon. A capacity audience gathered in the auditorium of the Modern Art Museum to hear Cohen and a skilled team of colleagues expound their art.                                                                                             Read more . . .

—Olin Chism special to the Star-Telegram (September 19, 2016)

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Fort Worth — At first, I thought that whoever titled Saturday afternoon’s concert by the Chamber Music Society of Fort Worth at the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth must have flunked Music Appreciation 101. The booklet proclaimed “The Many Faces of Romanticism,” but two-thirds of the concert repertoire belonged to Mozart and Hindemith, two composers who are never placed in the category of “romantic.”

    Indisputable romanticism did indeed opeSln the proceedings, with four pieces from German late romantic composer Max Bruch’s Eight Pieces for Clarinet, Viola, and Piano—a decidedly unique combination of instruments but also an ideal vehicle for the combination of pianist Jihye Chang, violist Richard Young, and clarinetist Franklin Cohen. That Cohen, principal clarinet of the Cleveland Orchestra, is an artist of particularly remarkable gifts was apparent on his first entry with a soaring melody in the Brahmsian Nocturne in B-flat. Violist Young and pianist Chang proved his equals here and in the remainder of this set.        Read more . . . 

—Wayne Gay for Theater Jones (September 20, 2016)

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Slavs . . . with a Twist

FORT WORTH—Shostakovich’s music tends to be rather acidic, more given to sardonic turns than conventional melodic beauty. One might imagine some of it as coming from the pen of Gustav Mahler, had he lived on a few more decades. 

     But in this case Shostakovich was in a melodic mood: The sonata is lyrical, not modernistic, with a particularly lovely slow movement fronting a playful finale. Bagratuni and Babayan made an eloquent case for the work, with the former’s mournful cello and Babayan’s dirgelike piano commentary two unforgettable high points.

     Prokofiev’s turn came with his Sonata for Violin and Piano in D Major, Opus 94a. Violinist Gary Levinson joined Babayan for the performance.

     In contrast to Shostakovich, Prokofiev was a master of memorable melodies, and this work, familiar in chamber music circles, was no twist to unfamiliar styles. Some of the music was demonic, some jolly, all appealing. The virtuosity of Levinson and Babayan in obviously difficult music was impressive throughout.

—Olin Chism Special for the Star-Telegram (October 16, 2016)                               Click here to read full review

Fort Worth — On Saturday afternoon, the Chamber Music Society of Fort Worth presented a concert of music by two of the giants of the 20th Century, both Russians and contemporaries: Sergei Prokofiev and younger Dmitri Shostakovich. The concert, held at The Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth, also featured three Russian-trained artists.

     It is often said that artists of the same nationality as the composer can bring some shared affinity to the music. If it was ever true, it is certainly less true in recent times as international travel and worldwide communications meld the regional voices of composers into a more international language. However, Saturday’s performance ably demonstrated that there is something about the training at Russian conservatories that brings special understanding to the musical voice of similarly schooled composers.

     Violinist and CMSFW Musical Director Gary Levinson was born in St. Petersburg and was admitted to the Leningrad Special Music School at the age of 5. He finished his training at the Juilliard School in New York City. Currently, as we all know in the Metroplex, he is the Senior Associate Concertmaster of the Dallas Symphony. Pianist Sergei Babayan was born in Guimri, Armenia, studied at the Moscow Conservatory, and now teaches at the Cleveland Institute of Music. Cellist Suren Bagratuni was born in Yerevan, Armenia, and also got his early training at the Moscow and finished at the New England Conservatory of Music.

    This affinity to each other and the composer was noticeable right from the start with a highly personal reading of Shostakovich’s Cello Sonata for Cello and Piano in D Minor.              Click here to read full review

—Gregory Sullivan Isaacs for Theater Jones (October 18, 2016)

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The Lighter Bank of the River Rhein

FORT WORTH — Chamber music audiences hear a lot of string quartets, not only because many prominent composers wrote them but because there are many modern ensembles around in the configuration — two violins, one viola and one cello — to play them.

     String quintets are much less commonly programmed, in part because they require that you add an extra viola — or in Schubert’s case an extra cello — to the standard quartet. And finding that extra player can be a bit of a problem.

     But the Chamber Music Society of Fort Worth made the leap anyway, programming not one but two string quintets — with one quartet as a sort of afterthought — in Saturday afternoon’s concert in the auditorium of the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth.                                                     Read more here . . .

—Olin Chism Special for the Star-Telegram (November 13, 2016)

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A Feast for the Ears

FORT WORTH —Once again, the Chamber Music Society of Fort Worth sold out the auditorium in the Modern Art Museum. In an era of lamentation over the proliferation of empty seats at classical music events, this organization is outgrowing its venue.

     This fact was especially noticeable Saturday afternoon because of a parking nightmare. The museum’s main lot was closed, and the harried valet attendant had some 20 cars lined up five minutes before the concert was scheduled to start.

     However, the performance by the Borromeo String Quartet was worth all of the parking frustration.

     The program featured three quartets by very different composers: one each by Haydn and Mozart followed by Ravel’s singular masterpiece. They also played an oddity: a short piece by George Gershwin that served as an amuse-bouche. TitledLullaby, it is really a barcarole with its rocking rhythm. It was an odd addition to the program, but it amply shows Gershwin’s remarkable talent as a composer.            

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—Gregory Sullivan Isaacs Special for the Star-Telegram (January 9, 2017)

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Fort Worth—The Borromeo String Quartet, presented by the Chamber Music Society of Fort Worth at the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth on Saturday afternoon, is known for its unusual use of technology. They use laptops or tablets onstage to read from scores or even manuscripts, providing a sense of connectedness with the other members of the quartet. Another innovation is the group’s seating arrangement: while most quartets have the two violinists sitting next to each other, the Borromeo’s seating, from left to right, is first violin, viola, cello, and second violin. This arrangement allows violist Mai Motobuchi to project well, while second violinist Kristopher Tong, facing away from the audience for much of his performance, occasionally turned to face listeners when he especially wished to bring out his part.                                                                    Read more here . . . 

—Robin Coffeltt for Theater Jones (January 10, 2017)

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Not Your Parents' Chestnuts

Fort Worth — Does the world need a string quartet transcription of Beethoven’s Appassionata Sonata?

     That’s the question I asked myself going into Saturday’s concert of the Amernet String Quartet, presented by the Chamber Music Society of Fort Worth at the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth.

      I came out of the concert knowing that, indeed, this particular transcription by Jeffery Briggs does what a transcription is supposed to do: adding new understanding to an existing work and expanding the base of musicians and audience-members who have access to the work.

      Even more than that, however, as I stepped into the unseasonably warm afternoon, I knew I had heard an ensemble of remarkable precision, musicality, and beauty of tone.

—Wayne Lee Gay for Theater Jones (February 14, 2017)                         Read more here . . .