Martinu/Vitkauskaite/Dvorak: Ensemble 360, Crucible Studio, Sheffield – 22/10/21

MARTINŮ  Nonet; VITKAUSKAITÉ Nanga (world premiere); DVOŘÁK  Piano Quintet No.2 in A Op.81: Ensemble 360

This was an enjoyable concert that involved most of the members of what I guess you might call a chamber music collective, Ensemble 360 (declaration of an interest: one of them is a near neighbour of mine).

The Martinu work was very easy on the ear and clearly for the musicians huge fun to play. It is scored for flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, horn, violin, viola, cello, and double bass. These nine distinct instrumental voices interact with one another in a very conversational sort of way – words like neo-classical, optimistic, and expressive come to mind. I am not sure I found it very memorable but the andante was particularly attractive – the programme note suggests it’s a lament for Martinu’s Czech homeland that he never went back to after emigrating to America before the war

I liked the new piece by Ruta Vitkauskaité, a (I think) Lithuanian composer now resident in the UK. It combined strange very high harmonics on the violin and cello, odd slapping sounds from both (and occasionally the piano as well) together with motor rhythms and at the same time some lyrical passages, sequences seeming to follow a similar pattern like waves. I am not entirely sure I understood the trajectory, but I never lost interest (in fact I was more gripped by it than by the Martinu). There was a particularly effective lament/cadenza for cello near the end , which Gemma Rsoefield played very well. If I hadn’t had a train to catch and dinner to eat, I would have stayed for the Q and A with the composer afterwards (she was in the audience).

The Dvorak piece was obviously more approachable than the other two. It was extremely well played. Although very attractive, I found the second movement, the Dumka (a Ukrainian dance) rather over-stayed its welcome. However the energy of and players’ commitment to the finale made for a very rousing end to the concert

All of these works were new to me – in many ways, the best sort of concert!