Outstanding pianist Kristian Chong has established a hugely successful annual series of stimulating chamber music concerts featuring this stellar musician with equally distinguished colleagues, in a three-part series at the Melbourne Recital Centre. The Primrose Potter Salon is the perfect home for his varied chamber music programs, with an almost full house for every occasion, with audiences silent and deeply engrossed, and in admiration of the musical excellence and satisfaction guaranteed. The June program gave us the passion and virtuosity of Beethoven and Richard Strauss, this September program gave us the extraordinary work by Messiaen: Quatuor pour la fin du temps, and in November the third program of the series will bring Majestic Celebrations of Horn trios by Brahms and Ligeti.
In his welcome and introduction, Kristian Chong spoke of tonight’s Quartet as being an extraordinary musical journey, a fine example of Olivier Messiaen’s unique craft, his use of unconventional scales and innovative rhythmic patterns, and the history of the piece. Intellectually inspired by Christian faith and Catholicism, Messiaen also spoke of having a feeling for sound-colour as a type of synaesthesia. Highly important too were his collections and studies of birdsongs, detailed and referenced in many works, and connected to musical units of time and place.
In 1939, Messiaen served in the army, spending time as a prisoner of war in Gorlitz, where he composed and performed Quartet for the End of Time with his fellow prisoners. With our growing sense of uncertain times at present, we could not escape the sense of Messiaen’s wintry confinement and the harsh times of 1940-41 where he composed this eight-movement work. Messiaen referenced passages from the apocalyptic Book of Revelation, and his music tonight was in the hands of four musicians who technically and sensitively brought a wide range of tonal colour and emotional expression to their audience. This was soul-stirring and at times tear-producing musical communication.
On stage candles were placed beside the performers, symbolising and setting a mystical and evocative atmosphere, with luminous blues and orange shades enhancing movement No. 1, “Liturgy of crystal,” where solo violin expressed the colours of the dawn skies, extremely high violin sustained notes growing from a thin tone breaking a heavenly silence, then short glissandos sensing the movement of waking birds. Shiny silvery piano chords freely hinted at a pulse, irregular in time.
In No. 2, “Vocalise, for the Angel who announces the end of time”, strident piano chords and assertive tone colours evoked the power of the mighty angel, who announces the end of time. A sudden shift in power brought mysterious, gentle and eerie sustained long notes on strings in paired, parallel lines, over soft upper bell-like clusters on the piano which descended with a shimmering of souls, circulating around silences. A short dramatic cadence brought an unspoken, but clearly felt “Wow!” from the audience members, who quietly released their breath and shifted in seats, releasing the tension before continuing this musical journey.
Messiaen also leaves instruments out of different movements. No. 3 “Abyss of the birds” for solo clarinet had beautifully reflective, long, sustained notes with gentle crescendos sadly taking the birds into the abyss of Time. Trills evoked the unpredictable movement of song and bird activity, bringing nature and spirituality together in wonderful clarinet playing.
No. 4, “Interlude-Scherzo”, energetically recalled melodies from the second movement, opening with only strings and clarinet stridently and melodically in unison rhythm. Contrasting textures drew images of circling birds whose final activity was to flutter and trill together. A lighter moment for the listeners.
The langurous, slow cello notes of the fifth movement, “Praise to the eternity of Jesus” paid respect to the everlasting Word of God, with a warm and reverential tone offering both an eerie lyricism and hope. Most admirable was the rich tone and projection of Vains’ cello with Chong’s extremely sensitive accompanying and dynamic control in an inevitable solemn and mesmerising chordal bell-like accompaniment.
Red and orange lights were the backdrop for No. 6, “Dance of Fury for the seven trumpets”, with Barltrop brilliantly and energetically leading the quartet with precision and powerful expression in perfectly synchronized orchestral flourishes, screeching high entries, and sharp tonal colour with a dramatic long trill following a rising accelerando and crescendo. A fine “Dance of fury” showed Messiaen’s unique writing and innovative units of rhythm and time.
Blue lighting set our souls for No. 7, “Tangle of rainbows, for the Angel who announces the end of time”. This announces the re-appearance of the Angel (a haunting, angular broad cello melody) and wisps of clouds (piano chords shifting across all registers, with high bell tones). With violin leading on rich low tones, orchestral forces built with an increased clamour, glissandos and complex interplay of lengthened principal themes. Was this the end of time on earth?
The final movement “Praise to the immortality of Jesus” brought an expressive and most peaceful conclusion as solo violin gently circled upwards, joined by piano with gentle pulsating rhythm. As the violin climbed to a highest sonic atmosphere, piano following with gentle pulsating rhythms developing to bell-like tones, we closed our eyes as we felt an overpowering finality – lights faded to black, and in the candlelight felt a timeless silence.
Photo supplied.
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Julie McErlain reviewed “Quartet for the End of Time”, performed by Kristian Chong & Friends: Kristian Chong (piano), Dale Barltrop (violin), Philip Arkinstall (clarinet) and Josephine Vains (cello), at the Melbourne Recital Centre, Primrose Potter Salon, on Thursday, September 5, 2024.
