Chamber Music Showcase
Berkman Recital Hall, University of Hartford
West Hartford
Dec. 5, 2023
I played the clarinet for six years. I was first chair in my highschool band, and band president. I consistently qualified for regional bands when I tried out. Needless to say, I thought I was hot musical stuff. Then I went to college and tried out for the symphonic wind ensemble. After I sufficiently embarrassed myself in the audition, they consoled me by letting me know that the pep band was accepting walk-ons.
You’ve got to be pretty darn good to perform music at the college level (or at least better than me!). Like the students of the Hartt School of Music at the University of Hartford displayed their talents at the Chamber Music Showcase held in Berkman Recital Hall.
This wasn’t simply a concert; it also served as the final exam for the student performers.
The showcase began with a five-piece ensemble consisting of a flute, oboe, bassoon, french horn and clarinet. I paid particular attention to the oboe during the performance, as it was an instrument I considered switching to during my moody teenage years when I wanted to be different for its own sake. Disaster stuck only moments into the performance, as part of the oboe fell off and halted the performance. The students took it in stride, and once the technical difficulties were handled the concert continued.
The second ensemble included a different oboe player as well as a violin and cello player. The student introduced the composer of the music as Wolfgang Schindlöcker, a composer so unknown that he doesn’t even have a Wikipedia page. However, he was one of few composers to write music for the trio of instruments, and was even known in his time as a favorite of Beethoven.
It should come as no surprise that white all of the performances were wonderful, my favorite was the third ensemble, the Carl Reinecke Trio, which featured the clarinet, violin and piano accompaniment. Samuel Beckwith excelled on the clarinet. Despite its relative straightforwardness, the clarinet is a difficult instrument to play well. Anyone can blow into it, and in less capable hands it vaguely resembles a goose honking. I was an expert goose whisperer, but Beckwith made the clarinet sing.
What really stood out to me about Beckwith’s performance was how woody the notes sound. It sounded as if he wasn’t simply blowing wind through a tube, but instead breathing through the reed, the wood of the cylinder, the metal rim of the bell- sound emanated from every part of the clarinet for a woody, warm sound.
The evening ended with a performance of Eric Ewazen’s “Frostfire” by a brass ensemble. Ewazen has the distinction of being the evening’s only living composer to have music performed. The brass ensemble was lively and the right tonal note to end the evening on.
I’ve often looked back at high school and wondered “What if?” What if I’d run track for all four years? What if I’d taken school more seriously? Last night helped me to put one of those “what ifs” to rest. These students are really good, and high school me was not even close to their level. Present day me can appreciate all of their talent and practice, and sit back and enjoy the accomplishments of today’s youth.
NEXT
The Hartt School hosts Foot in the Door and a voice recital featuring performer Qian Ye tonight.
Jamil goes to the Mark Twain House to find out when the trouble begins.
