Can one imagine an intimate chamber music evening without the violin? Three outstanding musicians will prove that it is indeed possible: the German violist Tabea Zimmermann, the French cellist Jean-Guihen Queyras and the Spanish pianist Javier Perianes. Almost all the works they will perform in various combinations were written by 19th-century composers whose lives became closely intertwined at different stages of their careers: Clara and Robert Schumann, Johannes Brahms and Joseph Joachim. Their intersecting biographies gave rise to a remarkable stylistic kinship between their works. The instrumental miniatures heard this evening may be likened to lyrical poems.
Each of Robert Schumann’s Fantasiestücke, Op. 73 (1849), has a distinct character: a nocturne-like opening gives way to a playful scherzo before culminating in a fiery finale. The emotions that fill Clara Schumann's Three Romances, Op. 22 (1853), unfold like successive stages of love. Joseph Joachim’s Hebrew Melodies, Op. 9 (1855), were inspired by Lord Byron's celebrated poetry collection of the same title. The instrumental Four Ballades and Romances, Op. 75 (1878), by Johannes Brahms originated as vocal duets set to texts drawn from several collections inspired by folk poetry. The second half of the evening opens with Johannes Brahms' Three Intermezzi, Op. 117 (1892), and his Trio in A minor, Op. 114 (1891), both introducing the audience into the same poetic atmosphere. Between them comes a musical counterpoint: a selection of pieces from Signs, Games and Messages (1989) by the contemporary Hungarian composer György Kurtág. These works, too, are infused with poetry, speaking to us – as their title suggests – through an entirely different set of codes and aesthetic conventions.
Grzegorz Zieziula