One of the nice things about Bargemusic (a docked barge in the East River, on the Brooklyn side) is its relative informality, at least for the Saturday afternoon free concerts. Unfortunately, the program is usually not printed; it’s announced from the stage. As a result, I did not get to write down the cellist’s name (he played very well), and I was able to do some sleuthing after the fact and determine that the pianist was Olga Vinokur (who also played very well—I’ve heard her before). Some additional sleuthing got me to the two works that were played—Beethoven, Sonata No. 2 in G minor (two of the movements) and Brahms, Sonata in E minor (all three movements). The Beethoven was written in 1796 and was one of his early works (Op. No. 5) while the Brahms came approximately 50 years later. Well, enough music history, let’s get to the music!
The first movement of the Beethoven had an interesting back-and-forth between the two instruments with clean, open lines. In fact, this work treated both instruments as equals. The third movement followed, which was a Rondo. It went at quite a clip—my notes read, “Fast fingering for both instruments seemed almost more for show than for the music.” Perhaps that’s because it was from Beethoven’s early period and he was out to prove something or to impress. Just a guess on my part. But the music was enjoyable, well played, and fun.
The Brahms movements were Andante (once again a guess), Minuet and Rondo (the Rondo was announced from the stage—my sleuthing came up with Fugue). The first movement had fuller writing than the Beethoven, and it included some very dramatic sections, as well. The minuet started out lightly but soon built in intensity, followed by a smoother, contrasting section. (There was a third instrument added in this movement—a ferry horn! Fortunately, it wasn’t too dissonant.) The third movement had an explosive opening and featured some dramatic playing for the cello (less so for the piano). In fact, this work featured the cello more, whereas the first work treated the two instruments as equals, as noted above. And we were told from the stage, before the work began, that the piece was written for an amateur cellist who was an acquaintance of Brahms. If so, he must have been a very good amateur.
In all, a nice hour of music—yes, there were minor distractions (children, ferry horns)—but that’s part of the informality of these Saturday afternoon concerts. I may be venturing to Brooklyn a few more times this summer!
ConcertMeister
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