Festival @ Home—Pittsburgh
Tuesday, December 8, 2020 to Thursday, December 10, 2020, 6:30 PM MST
Online broadcast at svmusicfestival.org
Chamber Concert
The concert broadcast was available December 8 at 6:30 PM (MT)-December 10 at 6:30 PM (MT). More Festival @ Home concerts will be presented through June, 2021. Learn more about Festival @ Home concerts from Music Director Alasdair Neale (above) and click here to find upcoming performances.
Gabriel Lefkowitz, Violin
Julia Noone, Violin
Joen Vasquez, Viola
Marylène Gingras-Roy, Viola
Si-Yan Darren Li, Cello
Mozart
String Quintet No. 4 in G Minor, K. 516
About the piece
The key of G Minor was, for Mozart, clearly a home for dark and melancholy moods. It’s the key in The Magic Flute in which Pamina sings:
Ah, I can feel it, love’s happiness
is fled forever!
See, Tamino, these tears
flow for you alone, beloved.
If you do not feel love’s yearning,
I shall find peace in death
Writing about the third movement of Mozart’s G Minor quintet, Petyr Tchaikovsky said “No one has ever known as well how to interpret so exquisitely in music the sense of resigned and inconsolable sorrow.” However, before you think all is doom and gloom, you should know that there’s quite a surprise at the end. Not to spoil it, but the mood definitely changes. Offering his thoughts, Music Director Alasdair Neale says “In a crowded field, it is one of Mozart’s greatest achievements, filled with pathos and joy, tenderness and turmoil.”
Exclusive, full interview with the Pittsburgh musicians
The concert broadcast includes a brief interview with Maestro Alasdair Neale and the performing musicians, but there’s more to explore! Learn about the inspiration and unique instrumentation behind the performance—and the surprises Mozart weaves into the score—from the musician’s perspective. Here’s the complete interview: