QUARTET PULLS AT HEARTSTRINGS

New Orford’s little touches add up to outstanding performance

The New Orford Quartet is one of Canada’s most eminent string quartets. Its members — violinists Jonathan Crow and Andrew Wan, violist Eric Nowlin and cellist Brian Manker — offered the first of their three Music and Beyond concerts. This one featured quartets by Ravel, Schafer and Brahms.

Ravel’s Quartet in F is one of the plums of the repertoire, but the New Orfords were not willing to let it go at that. Their mostly brilliant interpretation unveiled all kinds of insights, particularly in the second and third movements. The third, in fact, was magical.

The first movement was technically excellent but it was played at an unusually brisk tempo and lost much of its perfumed loveliness as a result.

Next came the first of R. Murray Schafer’s long series of string quartets, now a dozen I think. It is a work I intensely disliked for many years, though I gradually got over it. Sunday’s rendition was the most convincing I’ve heard.

The Brahms Quartet in C minor, op. 51, no. 1 was the most wonderful of the afternoon’s offerings, not only because it’s a masterwork, but because without being eccentric in their interpretation, the quartet allowed one to hear it with fresh ears. Little touches, like more than usual prominence given to the viola in selected passages, along with a clear sympathy for Brahms and, I might add, for the listener, made the performance altogether outstanding.

A superb performance throughout, its slow movement was suitably reflective while the third movement was nice and moody.

In case you missed my online review of the Opening Gala with Branford Marsalis, here’s an executive summary:

The first half of the program consisted of concertos by Vaughan Williams and Glazunov, accompanied by 27 string players from the National Arts Centre Orchestra conducted by Alain Trudel. Both were enjoyable, but the Vaughan Williams, originally written for the oboe, didn’t work quite as well as the Glazunov.

After intermission it was all brilliant jazz. Marsalis and his quartet played standard like Cheek to Cheek and St. James Infirmary.

Trudel, who is better known as a conductor these days, originally made his reputation as a trombonist and in that capacity he joined the quartet for three or four exceptionally hot numbers.

It was quite a show and many listeners who are not normally keen on jazz seemed to be more than persuaded by the musicianship and virtuosity of all concerned.