The End (6/6/18)

Not me, sillies. This was the final Midday Masterpieces concert in WQXR's series for this year.

Stella Chen, violin; Andrew Hsu, piano

Bach: Chaconne from the Partita in D minor
Schubert: Fantasie in C major, D. 960
Schumann: Abendlied, arr. Joachim

Okay, for the first (unaccompanied) piece, I wrote 'sarabande?'—well. I was close. It was a chaconne. Both are relatively ancient dance forms. It was slightly sad sounding but lovely. There was an extended section without chords that then morphed into double stops and an intensity of volume and liveliness.
It was lengthy and quite impressive.

Ms. Chen played the Bach from memory but used a score for the Schubert. It had a soft opening from the piano that led to a sweet, simple violin tune that was slightly haunting, set against a rippling accompaniment. We next went to a dance section (folk song–based?) that was fun to listen to, with a few humorous passages thrown in. Then there was a little bit of everything—a piano interlude; what sounded like a three-verse song; a pizzicato variation set against a running accompaniment with lots of scales—really, lots and lots of musical ideas explored.

The Schumann was gentle and lovely. Simple and straightforward. And touching.

I look forward to the new series season in September. What a great showcase and performance venue for these talented Juilliard students. Thank you, WQXR.

ConcertMeister