THREE COMPOSERS, THREE RARE GEMS AT OAKMONT

The nineteenth season of the Oakmont Concert Series opened January 8 with a recital by violinist Kai Gleusteen and pianist Catherine Ordronneau in Berger Auditorium. The enticing program featured three lesser known works by three of classical music’s iconic composers: Brahms, Schubert and Faure. Sonoma County violin recitals have become rare occurrences so there was much to anticipate. The program and the performances did not disappoint.

Things got off to a brisk start with the Brahms Scherzo from the F.A.E. Sonata, WoO post. 2. There is a bit of fascinating history regarding this movement. It was Schumann's idea in 1853 to put together a composite sonata as a gift for the great violinist Joachim. Albert Dietrich wrote the first movement, Schumann the second and fourth, and Brahms the Scherzo. F. A. E. stands for "Frei aber einsam," Joachim's motto (free but lonely). The movements were to feature the notes f, a, and e, and Joachim was to guess the composers. He performed the work with Clara Schumann at the Schumann household, and identified the composers without any trouble. While not often performed, the Scherzo is heard more than the other three movements. Gleusteen and Ordronneau played it superbly.

Schubert’s Fantasy in C Major D. 934, Op. Post. 159, is a true rarity on the concert stage. Lasting 25 minutes, it rambles somewhat, but given its title,
that is to be expected. It seems like a wordless song cycle, laced with one gorgeous melody after another, reminding the listener of some of Schubert’s better known songs, particularly Suleika, which also begins with a shimmering tremolo in the piano so characteristic of many of Schubert’s songs. The Fantasy was written when he was 30 years old, just before his death. It is as if he had hundreds of melodies inside just waiting to be written and luckily put this one on paper. Gleusteen and Ordronneau approached the work with great reverence, and again seemed to be in perfect sync with each other as they spun out motif after motif. The piece is a tour-de-force for the pianist, and Ordronneau showed that she was more than up to the challenge.

The perfectly polished performance came after intermission, when the husband-wife duo delivered the Violin Sonata No. 1 in A Major, Op. 13 of Gabriel Faure. Clearly, the artists have lived with this piece for years and rendered an exquisite and refined performance, replete with all the wonderfully woven textures for which this composer is known. Gleusteen’s 1781 Guadagnini violin sounded especially sweet in this work. The artists acknowledged the standing ovation of the audience of 200 with an encore: Sibelius’ Romance No. 2, yet another rarely performed work by a well-known composer. The afternoon added up to chamber music at its best, and one hopes that this Barcelona-based duo will return to Sonoma County again soon.