Yesterday, Mannes presented a joint recital by cellist Timothy Eddy, a founding member of the Orion Quartet, and pianist Gilbert Kalish, a recipient of many awards who is perhaps best known for his collaborations with other artists as well as his work with the Chamber Music Society. The evening's program of cello sonatas included works by Beethoven, Carter, Janáček and Brahms.
The first work was Beethoven's Sonata in F, Op. 5, No. 1 (1796). This early work was revolutionary at the time as it represented one of the earliest examples of a sonata in which the cello was not used merely as continuo accompaniment as had been the case in the Baroque era. Indeed, Beethoven is given credit as the first composer to write a full part for the cello in such a work. The first performance of this piece was in Berlin at the court of King Friedrich Wilhelm II of Prussia (himself an amateur cellist for whom Mozart had previously composed his famous "Prussian" quartets) where Beethoven played together with cellist Jean-Louis Duport. The king enjoyed the performance so much he made a gift of a gold snuff box to the composer.
There followed Carter's Sonata (1948). This was one of Carter's earliest works to break with the influence of Copland and is most notable for the separation of cello and piano as each progresses through the length of the work in an entirely different voice from the other. While the cello is emotional and lyrical, the piano is cold and as precise as an automaton. So stark is the contrast that at times I thought I was listening to two different pieces being played simultaneously in the manner of Charles Ives who had at one point actually encouraged the young Carter to pursue a career in music.
After intermission, the program continued with Janáček's Pohádka (A Tale) (1910). Based on The Tale of Tsar Berendyey by Russian author Vasily Zhukovsky, Janáček's work is notable for having been revised several times by the composer during his lifetime. It went from a three-movement (1910) to a four-movement (1912) and back again to a three-movement (1923) work. It was the final version that was performed at Mannes.
The final piece was Brahms' Sonata in E minor, Op. 38 (1862-1865). Originally composed with an adagio that was later deleted, the full title of the work is Sonate für Klavier und Violoncello, an indication of the importance Brahms placed on the piano part as equal to that of the cello. The work was dedicated to Josef Gänsbacher, a composer of lieder who had been instrumental in helping Brahms secure his position as director of the Vienna Singakademie in 1863. This was one of Brahms' first mature works in which he left his youthful romanticism behind for a more classical approach. Perhaps due to the lack of a slow movement, the sonata was rejected twice for publication before its final acceptance by Simrock.
Yesterday's performance was one of the best chamber recitals I've seen this season. Both Mr. Eddy and Mr. Kalish are musicians of the highest order, and their performance deserved to take place in a much larger venue. Instead, it was given at Mannes' Concert Hall before an enthusiastic audience of no more than fifty people including the artists' students. This is a sad commentary on the lack of appreciation for chamber music even in such a cosmopolitan city as New York. Nevertheless, the two musicians did their utmost to give the best performance possible and then came back to play the slow movement from Chopin's Cello Sonata as an encore. They well deserved the standing ovation they received.
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