Casals Festival: San Juan, Puerto Rico

PRECISO EL FINE ARTS QUARTET - DERROCHO EXPERIENCIA Y TALENTO EN CONCIERTO DOMINICAL...Una de las mayores virtudes del Festival Casals es la oportunidad de asistir a conciertos de música de cámara de óptima calidad...Todavía se recuerdan esos fantásticos conciertos de cámara con el maestro Casals al violonchelo, Isaac Stern y Alexander Schneider al violín y Mieczyslav Horszowski al piano, entre otros. La tradición continúa. Este pasado domingo se presentó en la Sala Sinfónica Pablo Casals el Fine Arts Quartet. Aunque es uno de los más antiguos cuartetos activos de Norteamérica, fundado en 1946, dos de los cuatro integrantes actuales llevan poco tiempo tocando en el grupo. Sin embargo, a juzgar por la muestra ofrecida en este recital, los miembros se han acoplado magníficamente bien. El programa comenzó con el Cuarteto de cuerdas núm. 7 en fa sostenido menor, op. 108, de Dmitri Shostakovich...El Fine Arts Quartet optó sabiamente por concentrarse en el humor sutil plasmado en la partitura, para dejar que la melancolía apareciera por sí sola, sin forzarla, como un leve eco escuchado a lo lejos. El resultado fue extraordinario...Una interesante obra [el Cuarteto en la menor del gran violinista Fritz Kreisler] cuyo inconfundible aire vienés fue subrayado por el Fine Arts Quartet con gracia y buen gusto, presentando admirablemente las melodías románticas...El finale del Quinteto en re mayor, K.593, de Mozart, figuró como encore; una joya que en las diestras manos del conjunto brilló con su genial jocosidad.

(Luis Hernández Mergal, El Nuevo Día, 25 de febrero de 2014) Full review

Hamilton, Canada

"The playing was really wonderful. I wasn't prepared for the range of articulations and dynamics, nor for the incredibly tight ensemble playing which continued throughout the recital...The Fine Arts Quartet gave a tour de force performance...I came away very impressed."

(David S Fawcett, Composer's Notebook, Sept 19, 2013)  Full review

Prades, France

"[Le Fine Arts Quartet] donne une splendide version de la Sérénade italienne d’Hugo Wolf, vibrante, légère et rapide, à l’équilibre idéal...La qualité d’exécution est au dessus du lot, avec un Ralph Evans en forme étincelante, dont l’archet vole sur l’instrument, et des partenaires qui font de même...Le Fine Arts Quartet joue ces pages (Herrmann) avec une implication irréprochable, faisant une démonstration de légèreté et de finesse de timbre." 

(Richard Letawe, ClassiqueInfo.com, 6 août 2013)

Montreal, Canada

"Last night, the audience was treated to the incomparable playing of the Fine Arts Quartet whose gifted musicality and technical expertise ably took on works by Saint-Saëns...remarkable sensitivities exerted passionately by the Fine Arts Quartet...Bravo to the members of the Fine Arts Quartet whose impeccable phrasing, timing and unbeatable interpretation of each piece vividly expressed all the miniscule and big moments of musical nuances residing in Saint-Saëns creative imagination."

(Nancy Snipper, Arts and Opinions, Vol.12, No.2, May 2013)  Full review

Naples, Italy

"La rassegna “Amalfi Coast Music & Arts Festival” riporta a Napoli lo straordinario Fine Arts Quartet...che si è confermato ensemble di caratura mondiale, caratterizzato da un suono di grande nitidezza e da un affiatamento perfetto."

(Criticaclassica, 20 luglio 2013) Full review

Washington DC: Kennedy Center

"Put together a list of the world’s most enduring string quartets, and the Fine Arts Quartet — a powerhouse of American chamber music for more than six decades — will rank very near the top. That’s due to the group’s incisive powers of interpretation and a taste for off-the-beaten-path repertoire, both of which were in evidence...Tuesday night, when the quartet appeared at the Kennedy Center...The Fine Arts Players turned in a superb and absolutely impassioned performance — a seamless and astute reading from its slashing opening chords to its galloping, heart-racing finale."

(Stephen Brookes, Washington Post, December 13, 2012) Full review

Alsace: Festival aux Chandelles

"Hôte pour la cinquième fois du Festival aux Chandelles, le légendaire quatuor américain a été fêté par le public de Saint-Pierre-sur-l'Hâte. Soixante-six ans d'existence depuis sa fondation à Chicago et héritage du premier Quatuor de Budapest, son modèle d'alors, un esprit fait d'engagement expressif, de somptuosité de la couleur et de virtuosité au service du sens de l'oeuvre. La prestigieuse formation du Fine Arts Quartet a conservé son identité esthétique tandis que passait le relais d'une génération à l'autre."

(Christian Fruchart, Dernières Nouvelles d'Alsace, Sep 5, 2012)   Full review 

 

Austin

"The Fine Arts Quartet is playing its 66th season, and if you’re curious how that is physically possible, it’s simply a gentle substitution of new members throughout the decades. Remarkably, Ralph Evans and Efim Boico, the first and second violinists, respectively, came on board in the early 1980s, and since then, have recorded 80 pieces of music in a staggering discography...They began with Haydn’s “String Quartet in F Major, Op.74, No.2,” in a bright and precise performance. The Haydn was followed by the fantastic “String Quartet in A Minor, Op. 41, No.1...After intermission, the quartet was joined by Michelle Schumann for Dvorak’s Quintet in A major, Op. 81. And the spectacular opening movement was a tempest, giving the impression of teetering above a cliff face...It was an evening of focused performances of warmly rewarding works."

(Luke Quinton, Austin360.com, July 9, 2012)  Full review

Ottawa

"The program of Haydn, Dohnányi and Zimbalist was a lovely array of the familiar, the relatively unknown and the almost completely obscure. It opened with Haydn’s String Quartet in F, op.74, no.2. The Fine Arts rendition was robust, focused and beautifully balanced...The musicians focused on its [the first movement's] formal integrity. They didn’t sacrifice the lyrical component, and the Andante grazioso second movement was particularly lovely. The Menuetto and Finale were vigorous and engaging...The Fine Arts performance [of the Dohnanyi] was thoroughly persuasive. The transitions from the introductions to the faster material were seamless, though that was only one of the many delights of the offering. Clean, well-blended and unanimous in intent, the four musicians were wonderfully expressive throughout the concert and these qualities brought the best features of Ephrem Zimbalist’s String Quartet in E minor to the fore.

(Richard Todd, Ottawa Citizen, July 6, 2012)  Full Review

Milwaukee

"Everything was in place: The notes of a highly challenging score, played impeccably with apparent ease; expressiveness that sounded universal rather than willful and egotistical; and an attention to ensemble that makes the audience think that the musicians have been together for a lifetime. The players came across not only as interpreters of the score, but as poetic, expressive curators. Stellar technique certainly helps with this, but would mean nothing without their shared understanding of the music. They seemed to realize that the Trout is a gem, a perfect specimen. They dusted it off and displayed it, with just the right amount of personal insight. The performance was emotional but it was also restrained, and that made the results all the more powerful. Their sonic philosophy was evident from the explosive opening chord, followed by a first theme played with a sense of awe and mystery. A welcome delicacy permeated all five movements. They passed around the tune in the celebrated variation movement as if handing off a fragile treasure. The pianissimos in the andante couldn’t have been softer or more poignant. The performance certainly had its bravura moments, which stood out all the more amid the delicacy...Mozart’s exquisite String Quartet K 575...opened the program. Originally, 18th and 19th century chamber music was not meant for big halls but for domestic spaces. It is an intimate and conversational art. This performance captured that intimacy and sent it all the way up to the 4th row of the balcony."

(Jonathan Brodie, Third Coast Digest, June 25, 2012)  Full Review

Milwaukee

"The Fine Arts Quartet worked magic for Dohnányi from the first measures to the last; the final quiet chords satisfied as much as any fortissimo closing cadence."

(David Bohn, Third Coast Digest, June 18, 2012)  Full review

Stockholm

"Det är ett varierat och vackert program gentlemännen i Fine Arts Quartet bjuder på...Inte var herrarna trötta efter sin fina konsert! Som extranummer fick vi en hisnande snabb Perpetual Motion från Haydns Stråkkvartett nr 54 i D-dur , "Lärkan" (1790). Vilken virtuositet! Välkomna tillbaka många gånger, Fine Arts Quartet."

(Jenny B, Kulturdelen, 5:e maj 2012)  Full review

Dijon

"À l’heure où le « jeunisme » est de mise, à l’heure où tant de nouvelles formations de chambristes talentueux piaffent en attendant une hypothétique gloire, qu’il est réconfortant de voir que sur les âmes bien nées les années n’ont pas de prise ! En effet, le quatuor Fine Arts et l’étonnant Menahem Pressler nous offrent sans lésiner des instants de pur bonheur...L’élégance, la sobriété, le sens du discours musical, tels peuvent être les qualificatifs caractérisant le jeu des quatre instrumentistes dans l’interprétation du quatuor de Haydn. Ils savent faire ressortir aussi bien le côté « école de cavalerie espagnole » aristocratique du thème du premier mouvement, que celui d’inspiration populaire du dernier ; ils savent nous faire goûter aux audaces harmoniques des changements de tons de la première partie aussi bien qu’insister sur le caractère ambigu de celui de l’adagio...Avec le sens de la logique musicale qui semble les caractériser, le quatuor Fine Arts et le pianiste Menahem Pressler nous ont bercés en bis avec le mouvement du quintette de Brahms dont le thème ambigu sans cesse répété conduit aux pays des rêves..."

(Joelle Farenc, Resmusica.com, 30 novembre 2011)  Full review

Dijon

"FINE ARTS QUARTET, POUR LE MEILLEUR DE LA MUSIQUE...D'emblée, l'on remarque avec plaisir l'assurance des quatre musiciens qui galvanise le groupe. Leur longue expérience s'exprime à chaque instant, tant dans leurs expressions scéniques que dans leur jeu. Et il en faut, soyez-en persuadés, pour jouer un Quatuor de Haydn en concert. Leur jeu clair et précis, appuyé par l'ingéniosité des contrastes reflétait la subtile cohésion des quatre musiciens. L'écoute mutuelle des chambristes permit une grande clarité dans leur discours mais également une interprétation pleine de vie, à la fois riche en couleurs, en nuances et en subtilité...La virtuosité de chacun des intrumentistes était impressionnante notamment par sa précision rhythmique."

(Lorraine Wild, Le Bien Publique, 27 novembre 2011)

Dijon

Le concert s'ouvrait sur le quatuor en sol majeur, le premier de l'opus 77, de Haydn...-une grande et belle leçon. Une interprétation proprement inspirée: un premier mouvement enjoué à souhait, le deuxième empreint d'une élégante gravité...une interprétation rayonnante.
Les qualités exceptionnelles du Fine Arts Quartet, modèle d'homogénéité, de plénitude, de distinction et d'engagement, allaient se confirmer dans le 3e quatuor de Bartók...Les ovations sont telles que, malgré la richesse du programme, les musiciens nous offrent un bis. Quel beau cadeau! Un intense bonheur. Merci, Monsieur Pressler de nous donner encore et toujours le meilleur de vous-même, et merci au Fine Arts Quartet pour cette soirée inoubliable."

(Eusébius, Musicologie.org, 26 novembre 2011)  Full review

Clermont-Ferrand

"Menahem Pressler et le Fine Arts Quartet hier soir: Un sublime retour aux fondamentaux...il est bon de retrouver une élégance stricte, raffinement et équilibre parfait...Tous les professionnalisme d'artistes d'envergure internationale pour une vraie démonstration d'osmose musicale...Fondamentalement rejouissant!"

(Pierre-Olivier Febvret, La Montagne, 24 novembre, 2011)

Bucharest

"The Chicago Fine Arts String Quartet -- an ensemble established some sixty-five years ago -- was supplemented with the young Romanian pianist Alexandra Costin...Enescu's quintet sounded very dramatic and, at the same time, quite languid. A highly professional performance which fully deserved the applause of a Friday afternoon audience."

(Guiseppe Pennisi, Patrikpen, 7 novembre 2011)  Full review

Bucharest

"Das Fine Arts Quartet...brachte am vergangenen Freitag im Bukarester Athenäum ein klassisches und ein romantisches Streichquartett zu Gehör: Joseph Haydns op. 77 Nr. 1 in G-Dur und Robert Schumanns op. 41 Nr. 1 in a-Moll. Bestechend war dabei die Homogenität des Klangs, insbesondere in den Unisono-Stellen des Finalsatzes im Haydn-Quartett, und die expressive Dynamik, spürbar vor allem in den Modulationen des langsamen dritten Satzes im Schumann-Quartett. In jedem Moment war aber die stupende Virtuosität der vier Musiker zu spüren, vor allem im Allegro-Eröffnungssatz des Haydn-Quartetts und ganz besonders im rauschenden Presto-Schlusssatz des Schumann-Quartetts."

(Dr. Markus Fischer, Allgemeine Deutsche Zeitung, 23. September 2011)  Full Review

Bucharest

"Unul dintre cele mai apreciate și longevive cvartete de coarde din lume, „Fine Arts”, a susținut două concerte în cadrul Festivalului Internațional „George Enescu”, la Timișoara și la Ateneul Român din București...Concertul de la Ateneu a fost o excelentă dovadă a nivelului artistic, a muzicalității și stilului componenților săi...Primul dintre cele trei cvartete de coarde publicate de Schumann în 1842 este o muzică tipic romantică, având pagini lirice cantabile dar și momente exuberante. De aceea, sonoritatea foarte nuanțată, rafinată, dar și siguranța ritmică a interpreților de la Ateneu i-au fost întru totul convenabile. Această muzică nu te poate lăsa nici un moment indiferent, pentru că ea rostește, în culori atât de diferite, o sferă cuprinzătoare de sentimente... Un foarte bun dozaj sonor, culori încântătoare, frazări potrivite și mai ales o armonie suverană s-au desprins din interpetarea Cvartetului „Fine Arts” și a pianistei Alexandra Costin."

(Costin Tuchilă, Liber sa spun, 20 Sep 2011)  Full Review