Alexander Tall, baritone; Ariana Kim, violin; Matthew Odell, piano
Romance in D-flat Major, Op. 22, No. 1 – Clara Schumann (1819–1896)
Variations on a Theme by Robert Schumann – C. Schumann
Dichterliebe (A Poet’s Love) – Robert Schumann (1810–1856)
Sonata No. 1 for Violin and Piano in A minor, Op. 105 – R. Schumann
Rückert Lieder – Gustav Mahler (1860–1911)
The Clara Schumann Romance was calm but with a lush presence. The violin and piano were mostly partners yet there were a few occasions where I actually felt that the violin was accompanying the piano. As a side note here, I just read (when researching some of these pieces) that there are not really eras of composition. Maybe not. My mind, however, proclaimed Romantic when I heard the aforementioned lush presence. There was a fullness and a richness of harmony and—for want of a better word—a feeling of romanticism. Call me old fashioned.
The second piece—Variations—was for solo piano and began with setting the theme almost like a chorale tune. The first movement rolled along pianistically, supporting the theme. The second (and I’m making these up as I go along—I did not explore a detailed examination of the score) was scherzo-esque, bright but not too fast. The third hearkened back to a chorale feel but with more intricate harmonies. The fourth was more subdued, though it had more fantastical filigree in the pianistic writing. The fifth was bold and forthright, with a touch of drama while the sixth had a wistful quality. The seventh had more rolling chords and filigree and controlled flights of fancy leading to a recapitulation—but the theme was all grown up now—ending with a rippling coda (a rounding out of the themes to actually round out the composition).
Dichterliebe. Gosh, I just don’t know what to say. Much has been written about this sixteen-song cycle (texts by Heinrich Heine, culled from a sixty-plus volume of poetry). So I won’t go overboard here. Mr. Tall sang very well, with crisp but not overly crisp German diction, and Mr. Odell was an incredibly supportive accompanist/partner. I can’t really speak to Mr. Tall’s overall arc of the cycle because this is the first time I’ve heard it in its entirety. Upon a first hearing, I was definitely not disappointed. I jotted down notes for each song but they would not amount to much here. Suffice it to say that I’m very glad to have heard this cycle in its entirety.
The R. Schumann violin and piano sonata started out somewhat darkly but not overly so, with nicely varied tempos and moods, though it seemed mildly plaintive at times, even in the richer, fuller sections, ending in a fireworks display of bowing and fingering. The second movement was gentler but still with a forward motion followed by a dance-like section, bouncing back and forth tempo-wise before closing with a lovely, quiet ending. The final movement was quite brisk in both piano and violin writing, ending finally with flashes of drama.
My notes and responses to the Rückert Lieder are similar to those of Dichterliebe. Clocking in at only five songs, with texts by Friedrich Rückert, my notes aren’t really helpful. The arc of Mahler’s cycle was not as grand as Schumann’s but the settings were a little more angular; lieder was growing up. Still, all five were easy enough to listen to and Mr. Tall and Mr. Odell made a great pair once again, as did Mr. Odell with Ms. Kim throughout the afternoon. This was a fine concert all the way around. Kudos to Lincoln Center Library for the Performing Arts for presenting such varied, well-curated programming. Check out your libraries—they’re more than just places for checking out books!
ConcertMeister
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