The Orion String Quartet and Nash Ensemble: A Concert Review

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“Mozart for Four

Mozart: String Quartet in F Major, K 590

Mozart: Piano Quartet No. 1 in G Minor, K 478

Performed by the Orion String Quartet and the Nash Ensemble” (gardnermuseum.org)

For the purposes of this assignment I choose this particular concert because I find Mozart’s music to be intellectual and engaging, requiring deep concentration and an open mind to be able the comprehend the depth of his musical visions. In this paper a will attempt to explore the qualities I like and dislike in the pieces presented in this concert and endeavor to analyze the “Piano Quartet No. 1 in G Minor, K 478”.

I thoroughly enjoyed this concert from beginning to end. The opening piece, “String Quartet in F Major, K 590”, was both soothing and moving with an engaging theme that followed through the piece. The sudden stops and starts with changes in theme built the suspense and pulled the listener in to a jaunty gallop through the second section. Also the bass tones in the back ground seem to be slightly off kilter with the violins, providing a complex texture and harmony that provides depth and poignancy to the music.

Section 3 is more merry and cheerful with the violins leading what feels like a race to be won. As they slow slightly we are soon dragged back to full speed and the race is on again. The violins and cello play off of each other as if in composition to see who will win the race. The bass brings in a dramatic flair as if building the suspense for the final climax of the music. The music slows to the point where you feel you have reached the end, but soon you are back on the journey again racing with the violins and lower instruments toward the finish line and the conclusion leaves the listener breathless.

This piece is ...

... middle of paper ...

...ong at an ever quickening pace. The dramatic changes in tempo add an interesting complexity to the movement and create different listening patterns for the listener to follow along with.

Over all this piece was energetic and full of energy it brought both drama and diversity of melodies and harmonies. I really enjoyed the entire concert and I thought the music was well performed. I would however have liked there to be more compositions included in the concert covering a broader range of Mozart’s quartets and piano concertos. I think that more pieces being played would have allowed for more comparisons to be drawn between pieces and allowed for the listener to enjoy more of the great music that Mozart has to offer.

Works Cited
"Mozart for Four." The Concert: A Classical Music Podcast . Web. 14 Feb 2010. .

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