E. Zivian and D. Sampson July 28 At the Hanna Canter (Joanie Shalit Photo)

PERFORMER AS PROMOTER: CLARA SCHUMANN AND MUSICAL SALONS CLOSE VOM FESTIVAL

The July 28 closing performance of the Valley of the Moon Chamber Music Festival could have been subtitled "Friends", as it was devoted to works by both Clara and Robert Schumann, and those of their friends and protégés Brahms and virtuoso violinist Joseph Joachim, with whom Clara toured extensively from the mid 1850s. The music of this program truly evoked the life and times of the composers, and the Festival amassed an impressive lineup of stellar artists to present a full and memorable afternoon of music making.

Soprano Danielle Sampson and Eric Zivian, the latter playing a Chickering fortepiano on loan from U.C. Berkeley, gave delightful performances of lieder by Clara and Brahms. Ms. Sampson has one of the loveliest voices I've heard in recent years, and there is an elusive quality known as "chiaroscuro" (bright-dark) in her sound that I have not heard in a light soprano voice since perhaps Kathleen Battle. It is excited without being shrill, clear but not monochromatic, and simultaneously light and full. She also has a sympathetic and welcoming presence and sings with great personal warmth and commitment. My only disappointment was that all her songs were more or less read with the score in hand. As a result I found she could not fully express text or music to her fullest potential. That said, her voice soared gloriously in Brahms' "Der Tod, das ist die kühle Nacht". Clara Schumann's exquisite "Die stille Lotosblume" floated sweetly and the agitated "Er is gekommen" evoked the requisite high anxiety. Still something about her performance could not fully ignite. The well-known Brahms' recital staple "Von eviger Liebe" did not have the dramatic specificity that complete memorization might have allowed, and all the songs fared dramatically about the same: pristinely sung, and about halfway acted. Ms. Sampson is a significant talent with a great future and I would love to experience her perform this program memorized.

It was a special treat to hear two pieces featuring the viola as solo instrument. Festival Laureate violist Andrew Gonzalez gave a charming and colorful performance of Robert Schumann's Märchenbilder, partnering with Festival laureate pianist Christian de Luca for the first and third movements, and with Mr. Zivian the second and fourth. Mr. Gonzalez's second solo offering was the "Grave" movement from Joachim’s Hebrew Mélodies. Mr. Gonzalez spun out beautifully touching and melancholy phrases supported by Mr. Zivian's intuitive, sensitive accompaniment.

Violinist Jason Issokson and Festival Apprentice pianist David Belkovski performed the F-A-E Sonata flat-out brilliantly. This piece is unique in that it was composed collaboratively by Schumann (intermezzo and finale), Brahms (scherzo) and Schumann's pupil Albert Dietrich (allegro), and given as a gift to their mutual friend the super-star Joachim. F-A-E stands for "frei aber einsam " ("free but lonely"), a motto adopted by Joachim, and also refers to the musical notes the piece was based upon. The score was presented to Joachim at a salon at the Schumann home and he played it that very evening, correctly identifying who wrote which movement.

Mr. Issokson is not only a spectacular player but also a funny and entertaining presenter, a self-described "giant nerd". After a few minutes of amusing setup, his demeanor suddenly changed as he lifted his violin to play, transporting the audience to Clara and Robert's Düsseldorf living room. His emotional range, sheer technical power and precise intonation guided the listener through this wild rollercoaster of a sonata. From Dietrich's rangy and highly chromatic allegro, through Schumann's tenderly introspective intermezzo and Brahms' lively scherzo, Mr. Issokson gave a finely honed rendering. Schumann's finale is quite demanding technically and in stamina, with many difficult repeated passages, and he gave the sense of it being mere child's play. I felt though, that Mr. Belkovski’s playing faded a bit in intensity towards the end, but it was more a visual impression rather than his playing, which remained strong.

The concert concluded with Brahms' Sextet No. 1 in B-flat Major, Op. 18, written when he was 27. An admitted novice in the world of instrumental chamber music, if I hadn't known it was Brahms, I would have guessed Schubert or Schumann on this first hearing, because so many of his signature orchestrating devices and harmonic colors were not that sonically evident in this early work.

The uniformly outstanding players were Keats Dieffenbach and Marc Destrubé, violins; Joshua Gomberoff and Mr. Gonzalez, violas; and cellists Geirprúdor Gudmundsdóttir and Tanya Tomkins. The tempi chosen by this ensemble were exceptionally brisk, injecting welcome energy into the basically laid back, summer afternoon feel of this piece. The opening allegro isn't really fast at all but has long lyrical lines. The andante is funereal in both key (D minor) and color. The scherzo dances, but never frenetically, and the finale rondo eases its way to the end, picking some final heat at the coda.

This sextet of musicians played as friends would in their own salon. Mr. Gonzalez appeared to manage a few transitions from his center seat, but otherwise they just played as one entity. That is the ultimate beauty and goal of chamber music of which this recital (and whole Festival series) was an exemplary example.