Music connoisseurs in the city were in for an aural treat in the Arties chamber music concert held this weekend at the Alliance Française organised by the International Music & Arts Society in association with Titan Industries. The quintet, that tours Bangalore often and travels across the globe presented an evening of unforgettable chamber music by legendary French romantic composers.
Comprising Gauthier Herrman on the cello, Cécile Grassi on the viola, Mathilde Borsarello Hermann and Laurent Manaud Pallas on the violins and Emmanuel Christien on the piano, the quintet kicked off with impressionist maestro Maurice Ravel’s Piano Trio. Opening with the dreamy ‘Modéré’ movement, the trio synchronised a rhythmic, brief and somewhat dark patch before moving into delicate, lyrical and bright fantasies. Poetic and poignant, the ‘Pantoum’ movement glittered in octave doublings in the strings and illuminated colours in the piano before flowing into a slower ‘Passacaille’.
The women duo took centre stage for the next rendition accompanied by Emmanuel for a recreation of Gabriel Fauré’s ‘Après un rêve’ arrangement for violin, violin and piano. The ladies swept through the chamber composition in scintillating harmony and dabbled in choral movements. Narrating the original dreamy love song of two lovers’ elopement, the notes danced wild and free. The quintet come together next for a glorious tribute to Jean-Philippe Rameau to mark his 250th death anniversary.
With lingering nuances floating into the mesmerising composition, the strings and keys transported the listeners to the early Baroque era and the glorious rise of the romantic period. Their finale was a marvellous impersonation of César Franck’s Piano Qunitet in F minor. The ladies opened strongly with a dramatic introduction on ‘Molto moderato quasi lento’ to which Emmanuel responded gently. The strings restated their opening with Laurent and Gauthier joining in to which the piano turned gentler.
The dialogue continued until it developed into an intensive, stormy climax paving the way for the second sonata movement ‘Lento con molto sentimento.’The strings again dramatised with strong cello backing to a narrative flourish setting stage for the finale – ‘Allegro non troppo ma con fuoco’ Characterised by a relentless rhythmic drive, the musicians kicked up the finale with an aggressive piano theme accompanied by a strong strings overture that receives a standing ovation from the spellbound audience.
