Quartet Wows the Audience at Debut Event in Benicia

Debut or not, this first performance of the Margherita String Quartet was polished and brilliant.  It was a great program of accomplished players in a unique and beautiful setting, St. Paul’s church in historic downtown Benicia.  Its ceilings of handcrafted wood that look like the inside of an inverted ship’s bow provided warm and reverberant acoustics.  Whether or not you are a fan of classical music, you would have to be impressed by the abilities of these musicians.  They are Clif Foster and Elbert Tsai on violins, Caroline Lee on viola and Michael Graham on cello.

The program consisted of works by Joseph Hadyn, Anton Dvorak and Bela Bartok, spanning 130 years of musical styles.  First was Haydn’s string quartet Opus 77 No. 2 (1799), a charming representation of music from the heart of the classical era.  From the down beat of the Allegro, a rich blending of tones and defined rhythmic articulation, we sensed that we were in for a good afternoon of music. 

Next was the Bartok String Quartet #4 (1928) Vivace assai (very fast), certainly the most challenging piece of the day on more than one level.  The players executed a variety of technical feats beyond the usual call for their instruments.  The tonalities of Bartok’s music sound very unusual, dissonant and unsettled while deeply moving.  This is the result of Bartok’s combining the folk music of his native Hungary with compositional techniques of the 12-tone composers of the early 20^th century.  The vigor with which the piece was performed was evidenced by the hairs hanging from the cellist’s bow.

After a brief intermission, where both musicians and audience could catch their breath, we were treated to one of the most beautiful pieces of music ever written in the genre, Dvorak’s String Quartet No. 13 (Opus 106, 1895).  The players’ intonation and blending created a sound so lyrical as to go beyond the instruments themselves to pure musical expression.  At the end of the final movement, Allegro con fuco (with fire), there was a standing ovation.  I heard rumor they’ll be back to St. Paul’s in the Spring.  Don’t miss it.