Steven Silverman on harpsichord and Gerall Hieser on cello at Sunday's concert of the Gabriel Chamber Ensemble. PHOTOS BY JACQUELINE DORMER
Originally published in the Pottsville Republican-Herald on April 4, 2022.
SCHUYLKILL HAVEN — Antonio Vivaldi’s Sonata for Cello and Continuo in E Minor is elegant, almost holy in its simplicity. It’s no wonder then, that it was composed by a priest.
Gerall Hieser’s cello was eloquent, perfectly formed.
The sonata, written in the Baroque period of classical music, seems to transcend the structural rigidity of its time and become a work of natural perfection, like the dove in the stained glass window at Jerusalem Evangelical Lutheran Church.
That is where the Gabriel Chamber Ensemble performed a series of Baroque-era classics, including Vivaldi’s famed Four Seasons violin concerto, on Sunday.
The large ensemble featured violinists Simon Maurer, Dana Allaband, Rebecca Brown, Inna Eyzerovich and Barbra Jaffe, violists Agnès Maurer and Louise Jaffe, cellists Hieser and Franklin Nino, string bassist Domenick Fiore and Steven Silverman on harpsichord.
The harpsichord, an 18th-century instrument which predates the piano, produces sound by plucking at strings corresponding to each key pressed. Some liken it to nails on a chalkboard, but to me, it is key to the aloof, aristocratic sound that defined its era.
Case in point: the Concerto in G Major for Viola and Orchestra by German Baroque composer Georg Philipp Telemann, which immediately conjures up a world of powdered wigs and palace intrigue. It starts out soothing, with serene string harmonies. In the third movement, it finally introduces drama and conflict, especially with Agnès Maurer’s haunting viola.
Barbara Jaffe on violin, and Agnes Maurer and Louise Jaffe on viola.
Vivaldi’s Four Seasons follow the same pattern. Often, the pieces sound like a ticking clock, representing the passage of time, the changing of the seasons and the mechanical perfection of Baroque-era music.
The opening movement of the “Spring” section is instantly recognizable, played in countless movies and cartoons. The Gabriel cast it in a new light with a sharp, distinct, birdlike sound. The later movements, though lesser-known, share the first’s sophisticated beauty. Leading the ensemble, Simon Maurer’s passion was evident. “Summer” captures the languid, humid passion of the season, then unleashes a torrent of hot rain and lightning. “Autumn” begins with crisp gold sunshine, fading to leafless trees, harvested fields and early sunsets.
The concert, the conclusion of the ensemble’s 32nd season, ended with a threatening, chilly rendition of Vivaldi’s “Winter,” making for an arresting finale.
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