Stockbridge — If you are unfamiliar with Franz Schubert’s String Quartet No. 14 in D minor, then perhaps you’ve forgotten its nickname, “Death and the Maiden.” It’s impossible to name the greatest string quartet of all time, but in terms of popularity, this one is among the top 10. It is one of three pieces the Berkshire Chamber Players will perform at the Stockbridge Library on April 15 at 7 p.m.
But first on the program is a little-known Beethoven work, a duet for violin and cello written when Ludwig was hardly more than a teenager. It has no opus number, and the composer omitted it from his catalog for good reason: It sounds like a student piece derivative of Mozart and Haydn. And yet certain features, like dramatic dynamic shifts, novel harmonies, and unconventional stops and starts, reveal a budding sophistication that would ultimately leave his predecessors in the dust.
Opera composer Giacomo Puccini’s “Crisantemi” (“Chrysanthemums”) sounds solemn for a reason: Puccini composed the piece in 1890 upon the death of the his friend Prince Amadeo di Savoia, Duca d’Aosta, the former King of Spain, who had died on January 18. Puccini called it “Crisantemi” because of the association between chrysanthemums and funerals. Its A-B-A form gives the piece a songlike structure that is easy to follow. The harmonies are simple and hymnlike.
Schubert’s “Death and the Maiden” reflects Schubert’s struggle with mortality and his exploration of the human condition. It comes on like gangbusters and never lets up, maintaining a high energy level even in the quiet passages. The piece is emotionally intense from start to finish, with a persistent pulse that you can feel even in moments of silence, kind of like the clock that was ticking on Schubert’s life. But hauntingly beautiful melodies are probably the main cause of the piece’s continued popularity.
Joel Pitchon is a US-based classical violinist and music educator. He holds a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree from the Juilliard School in New York, where he studied under Ivan Galamian and Dorothy DeLay. He has performed extensively as a soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral player, including with the National Symphony Orchestra and the Boston Pops. Alongside his performing career, Pitchon is involved in music education and outreach programs, teaching at such institutions as the University of Massachusetts Amherst and the Yellow Barn Music School. He is also active in commissioning and performing new works by contemporary composers.
Born on the island of Montserrat in the Caribbean, Robyn Quinnett began playing the violin at age eight and has won several competitions, including the Mariam Hayes and Ruth Kern Young Artists Concerto competitions. She has performed with several orchestras, including the American, Knoxville, Princeton, and New Haven Symphony Orchestras, and founded the Montserrat Music Festival, which brings music education and live chamber music to Montserrat. Quinnett earned her degrees from the Juilliard School and a D.M.A. from Stony Brook University, studying with Naoko Tanaka, Stephen Clapp, and Hagai Shaham. She teaches violin at the Chapin School in New York City and has attended the Tanglewood Music Center, Aspen Music Festival and School, and Colorado College Summer Music Festival.
Marka Gustavsson is a violist and chamber musician who spent three summers as a Tanglewood Fellow between 1991 and 1993. Since then, she has established a successful performance career both in the United States and internationally. Gustavsson has performed as a guest artist at numerous events including the Bard Music Festival, Mostly Mozart, and the Lincoln Center Chamber Music Society. Additionally, she has premiered and recorded works by various composers, including Joan Tower and Tan Dun. Gustavsson was a member of the Colorado Quartet from 1999 to 2014 and has taught at various institutions, including Yale, Oberlin, and Bard College and Conservatory, where she currently serves as Associate Director and Coordinator of Chamber Music.
Ronald Feldman is a cellist and conductor who is best known as the Music Director of the Berkshire Symphony, the resident orchestra at Williams College, where he is Artist in Residence and Lecturer in Music. Feldman twice won the League of American Orchestras’ ASCAP Award for his innovative programming of contemporary music. He has guest-conducted renowned orchestras such as the London Symphony, St. Louis Symphony, and Quebec Symphony, and served as assistant to Boston Pops Principal Conductor and composer John Williams. Feldman has appeared as a soloist in concerto repertoire from Dvořák to Ligeti and has performed chamber music with the Boston Symphony Chamber Players, Collage New Music, and the Williams Chamber Players. He has also collaborated with notable musicians such as Yo-Yo Ma, Emmanuel Ax, and Garrick Ohlsson.
Hear the Berkshire Chamber Players perform a program of Beethoven, Puccini, and Schubert at the Stockbridge Library on Saturday, April 15, at 7 p.m. Admission is free, but space is limited, so you’ll need to email info@stockbridgelibrary.org or call (413) 298-5501 to reserve a seat.
