Shostakovich piano trio leaves a lasting impression at Sarasota Music Festival

"From Bach to Block," Sarasota Music Festival’s first Friday night concert, June 6 at the Sarasota Opera House, was eye-opening and quite satisfying. 

Beginning the program was J.S. Bach’s spirited Brandenburg Concerto No. 4 in G Major. Tessa Lark and flutist Alex Sopp, both SMF faculty artists, and pianist Jeffrey Kahane, SMF director, were joined by 10 fellows, as students in the festival are called.

One fellow, flutist Ellie Eunbi Boek, played shoulder to shoulder with Lark and Sopp as one of the three solo voices in this concerto grosso where the blend and balance were pleasing throughout.

Lark, new to the SMF faculty in 2024, was alarmingly facile in tight runs while Sopp and Boek fit together tightly, passing phrases back and forth all in a perfectly Bach-ish style. 

The fellows — four violins, viola, two cellos and a bass – performed along with Kahane on piano. For many, the piano is a reasonable alternative to the harpsichord. I missed the distinctive pluck of the harpsichord. 

I’ve attended almost three decades of SMF performances and was more profoundly moved by this night’s Piano Trio No. 2 in E minor by Dmitri Shostakovich than any other. Composed in 1944 after the death of a close friend and in horrifying times as war raged and news spread about Germany’s concentration camps, the piece uses klezmer colors and folk tunes to capture the mood.

Two of the three faculty artists on stage for the piano trio are new to the festival this year: violinist David Bowlin and pianist Nicolas Namoradze. Cellist Karen Ouzounian joined only last season. Together in this remarkable trio their fresh collaboration displayed gravitas of artistry and deep commitment. 

Otherworldly harmonics on the strings grew to full-voiced sombre lines and compelling conversation with piano as the opening andante moved on to a snarling allegro scherzo with bows digging in like a threat. Taking a reflective turn in the largo, the piano’s dense dark chords rose up like a fist to the heavens. Ouzounian’s exquisite cello line color under Bowlin’s ghostly high harmonics were both breathtaking. 

The last movement allegretto draws the clear conclusion that something is terribly wrong, Namoradze brought forth the darkness with hints of a folk tune growing to a macabre klezmer. Bowlin and Ouzounian brought a hint of light lyricism as well as some col legno (slapping bow wood to the strings) before turning dark again. At last violin and cello exchange a five-note deedle-deedle-dum, making for an epic ending. 

Cellist Mike Block, also a newish faculty member whose passion is cross-cultural collaborations, hosted a segment of the concert featuring 12 students improvising on tunes from Mali, Brazil and Bulgaria. Each student had their turn as a soloist. There were two true standouts— pianist Ningxin Zhan in the samba and clarinetist Jared Sta. Ana. Both performed with a bold-voiced verve.

Ludwig Thuille is not well known, but his Sextet in B-flat Major, Op. 6, is a welcome calling card for introduction. The ensemble of festival artists and two student fellows played together in a seamless whole. Xinrae Cardozo played horn with as smooth a tone as any faculty member. Flutist Ellen Hayun Lee played with full confidence and leadership. 

The remaining faculty artists — oboist Toyin Spellman-Diaz, clarinetist Romie de Guise-Langlois, bassoonist Peter Kolkay and pianist Michael Adcock — filled out the ensemble in this perfectly delightful performance of a middle-of-the-road Romantic era piece. The melodically rich chamber music grew more interesting as each movement passed. The Alpine horn color of the third movement painted a picture, and the finale delivered a boost of energy to send us out the door.