With a feast of nine fine chamber music concerts in this year’s Brunswick Festival, it was a wise move to divide the events into a 2-Part schedule with four concerts in the first week, a week’s break while other musical events were demanding our attention, and then a return for Part 2. Concert 5 featured two of Melbourne’s outstanding instrumentalists, both known for their excellent musicianship in solo and ensemble work. With recognition and praise for performances with international and Australian symphony orchestras, their performance was a complete musical treat, a classy, “textbook” presentation of two great works in an intimate performance space with a cosy atmosphere and a warm acoustic.
Although much of Leos Janacek’s early music remains unpublished, he achieved national and international prominence when considered to be a successor to Dvorak, admired for his unconventional sense of form, uncommon harmonic progressions, and his sympathetic association with the rhythms and motifs of speech and Czech folk song. The first movement of his Violin Sonata, Con moto, surprised us with an eerie “vocal” cry on solo violin, reflective of the passionate and free Romani gypsy style, sad and enticing. An immediate mood change took the form of many short conversational sections in fluent tempo changes and echoing thoughts, with a careful variation of short motives. In such expressive music the colour and attention to detail from both musicians was impressive, as these short motifs shifted fluently from solo prominence to accompaniment and quickly back again. Fine orchestration in the second movement Ballada produced much passionate violin work with dark low lyrical lines against harp-like high piano accompaniment. Highly impressive was the wealth of tone colour and musical sensitivity throughout, and what stood out was Kirsanova’s expression with extreme pitch levels, particularly her many exposed sustained highest notes on the violin held with secure pitch, roundness and warmth of tone.
Janacek’s national pride could be felt in the Allegretto movement, with Balkan folk melodies, dance rhythms, modal harmonies and heavy percussive footfalls in earthy dance beats, all strongly delivered without exaggerated physical movement by the musicians. Brozgul’s poetic, sparkling or romantic playing intuitively teamed with Kirsanova’s sweetness, warmth and nostalgia in the unusual final movement Adagio whose final bars hinted at tragedy and distant sorrow. Considered post-Romantic, this unconventional work, written in 1914, gently suggested Janacek’s musical expression of the atmosphere and darker times in Europe. Today, this audience was full of admiration for the very expressive and intuitive partnership of these two accomplished musicians.
Beethoven’s Sonata No 9 in A major, Op. 47, is described as “notable for its technical difficulty, unusual length and emotional scope”. Most interesting is that it was first dedicated to the violinist Rudolphe Kreutzer, but he disliked the piece and refused to play it. Opening with a slow introduction, the duo was most sensitive and engaging, united seamlessly in tempo and dynamic changes, modest in their physical demeanour yet giving such expressive playing in the mostly composed darker A minor harmony. In an exciting dramatic presto development, the piano matched the violin in solo technical difficulty. A stirring close in the major key led the violin to splendid high notes, spiritually effective and celestial.
A most elegant second movement Andante con variazoni allowed Brozgul to produce an eloquent warm and romantic tone in the opening hymn-like, calm theme, with her Scherzo variation exploiting a lighter texture, clean trills, joyfulness and true romanticism in a dancing piano accompaniment. Kirsanova mirrored the mood in étude-like high dancing octaves and brisk semi-pizzicato punctuation. Again there were many “textbook” moments in this beautifully staged performance, with visual and aural beauty adding to the audience’s delight.
Possibly the most powerful piano chord for the evening opened the final Presto movement. This was the Beethoven we love – with touches of pastoral lyricism, surprises, dramatic pauses, emotional darkness and surges of hope and glory. Exuberance and joy made this an exhilarating finale, but Beethoven’s closing statements brought a return of alternating moods, troubled thoughts perhaps followed by a sudden, joyful finish.
This was a truly fine recital bringing us some of the best repertoire for violin and piano as equal partners in this highly appreciated 17th Brunswick (Beethoven) Chamber Music Festival.
Photo supplied.
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Julie McErlain reviewed the recital given by violinist Sophia Kirsanova and pianist Berta Brozgul as part of the Brunswick Beethoven Festival at Brunswick Uniting Church on February 18, 2025.
