2 Apr 2009 : NZTrio – Vontasia

I came to an appreciation of classical music relatively late in life, so when it comes to describing it I’m a bit like the uneducated art critic who says, “I don’t know much about art, but I know what I like.”

After absorbing NZTrio’s superb Vontasia concert last Sunday, I can honestly go one step further and say that not only did I like it, but loved it!

NZTrio has earned itself a well deserved reputation for its professionalism and dedication to performing its art, as well as taking its music to all parts of the country. Wanganui is indeed fortunate to have been on its itinerary, so it was a pity there wasn’t a bigger audience to appreciate the two hours of wonderful entertainment provided.

The programme was dedicated to celebrating two historic classical music milestones – the death of Franz Joseph Haydn and the birth of Felix Mendelssohn in 1809. Fittingly, the programme began with a work by the former and concluded with one by the latter. Haydn’s Piano Trio in E minor, Hob XV:12 was exquisitely played by pianist Sarah Watkins, violinist Justine Cormack and cellist Ashley Brown, whetting our appetites for what was to come.

Next came three modern pieces – Tibetan Tunes by Chen Yi; Entering the Stream by Indonesian Wayan Yudane (this performance was its world premiere); and Shades by Mike Teun. This is the kind of music I’m inclined to switch off and replace with a CD of my choosing when it comes over the radio, but played live I found it much more ‘listenable’ and intriguing. The sounds of nature that emerged from the three instruments were such that you almost could not believe – from bird calls to waterfalls, to haunting, wailing cries and tripping crescendos. Having said that, the return to the masters for the final item was a welcome one and Mendelssohn’s Piano Trio No 1 in D minor Op 49, described by a friend of the composer as “The master trio of all time,” was played masterfully by this talented trio – from the relentless passion of the first movement, to the crispness of the scherzo and culminating in its powerful finale.

If there was any negative aspect to this wonderful concert, it was the already mentioned lack of patronage by local music lovers.

Reviewed by Murray Crawford - River City Press, Wanganui