Nova Linea Musica (NLM) presented its second concert on Wednesday at Guarneri Hall. It was a wonderful evening of dazzling performances, including new music from Chicago composer Paul Novak performed by cellist Alexander Hersh and a stellar solo turn by violist Samuel Rosenthal. The LNM trio is a residence that debuted with the closing music performance by Armenian composer Arno Babajanian.
Doyle Armbrust hosted and interviewed Paul Novak and Alexander Hersh before the concert. Armbrust prefaced the conversation, mentioning the importance of programs when funding could be threatened. NLM is doing important work, giving new artists a stage and commissioning work. The pre-concert talk showed Novak and Hersh's camaraderie and deep respect for each other, and I felt a definitive sense of collaboration. Hersh's excitement and passion for the new composition was palpable. It was fascinating to hear the path from commission to performance through workshopping. NLM commissioned Novak's variations with sand in the gears for singing cellists for Hersh's unique talent and style. I can imagine what it must have been like to be in the room with great composers and musicians who created the world canon of classical music.
The concert opened with Samuel Rosenthal on solo viola playing music by Errolyn Wallen, Garth Knox, and György Ligeti. Rosenthal has exceptional stage presence and spoke of the stories behind the music, all from 20th-century composers. Wallen's Lavinia is from the ancient Greek character consumed with envy over her husband's former lover, Dido. A motif runs through it, representing rumination and self-doubt.
It opens with short bursts that convey self-doubt and thinking of what one could have said or done and continues into a fugue state of mind, circling back to the original bursts. Rosenthal continued with The Bridges of Newcastle by Knox, using the viola's bridge with pizzicato and bowing. He ended with Ligeti's Sonata for solo Viola, II Loop. I felt a distinctly urban vibe from this short piece. It felt like downtown Chicago when the Loop was full of workers. Rosenthal's joy in playing it enhanced the kinetic energy of the piece.
Rosenthal and Hersh played Paul Wianako's American Haiku for Viola and Cello. The program notes that Japanese haiku is more than a syllable count. Words and characters can mean different things depending on the context. The American haiku form is the five-seven-five form I learned in grammar school. American English is not as visually or audibly complex as many languages. Rosenthal and Hersh gave the music the nuance and shading needed to have ambiguity and color to what seems simple. American Haiku had some funk that was surprising as it was cool. I loved the fearlessness and metropolitan feel of it.
Violist Rabia Brooke represented one-third of the trio in residence, performing Ligeti's Hommage to Hilidng Rosenberg with Hersh on cello. Brooke has a lovely form of playing with great posture and tempo. I think that her bowing strokes will achieve more finesse as she progresses through the NLM residence with the pianist and Bienen School of Music graduate Dr. Lam Wong and cellist Sara Chong.
Hersh took a turn playing his own composition, Moon Music, for solo cello. This piece particularly resonated with me. Hersh wrote it in honor of his grandmother, who was transitioning from life. Many have tried to put words to that experience, but it is not a time for words. It is a pure energy exchange from this world to the next. Moon Music features Hersh playing a beautiful melody and vocalizing over the melody. His intonation is nasal and immediately brings to mind qawwali or Sufi devotional music. Moon Music is holy music, in my opinion, and a beautiful tribute to a beloved grandmother.
Hersh played Bernard Rands' Memo No. 9-Fantasia for solo cello, which was written for him. Hersh met Rands and said to call him if he wanted to write a piece for a solo cello. Rands did just that, and Hersh played this piece at Rands' 90th birthday celebration. The letters of Hersh's shortened name, Alex, are encoded as notes in the piece. It gives an idea of how talented Hersh is that Rands wrote such an individualized piece for him.
Paul Novak's variations with sand in the gears were the highlight of Hersh's solo turn at Guarneri Hall. It was the world premiere; I am sure it will not be the only time it is performed. Once again, Hersh sings along while playing the cello. He likened it to patting your head and rubbing your belly. Novak's music is a new classical form with that same metropolitan feel. Frenetic passages or playful bursts dance against the vignettes of Chicago in my head. I am a visual listener and would love to have this to play on a rainy day.
The last solo piece was Lamentatio by Giovanni Sollima, who Hersh described as the coolest Italian man ever. Lamentatio leans into the qawwali style of vocalizing. It is a meditative piece that turns into a wild dancing tempo. It has some blues notes and can be compared to the pace of "shredding" on a guitar. Then, it returns to Savasana. It was a wild ride and the perfect finale to Hersh's set.
The evening ended with a performance by NLM's trio, which consisted of Rabia Brooke on violin, Sara Chong on cello, and Lam Wong on piano. They played Arno Babajanian's Piano Trio in F-Sharp minor. Babajanian was an Armenian composer who had worked all his life behind the Iron Curtain of the Soviet era. His music was deeply influenced by Armenian folk music and dancing. This piece is moody and dramatic, slowly building in tension with each instrument taking center stage. The piano serves more as a percussion underlying the strings in some places. Brooke's violin had the perfect sweetness and subtlety, playing high notes in unison with the cello on a lower register. It was a thrilling and dramatic end to the concert and the beginning of a residence that gives truth to NLM's mission to serve as a catalyst for new music and commissions in live performances.
Nova Linea Musica presents exquisitely curated music in a chamber setting. Guarneri Hall has perfect acoustics and sight lines. This is how great music is composed and played for an appreciative audience. Performances at Guarneri Hall are on YouTube. Performances and interviews with musicians and the people who make it happen. It is the next best thing to being there. I highly recommend getting tickets to a performance and supporting this generator and catalyst of great music in Chicago. Put the phone down, turn off the television, and be there as a witness and participant. For more information, please visit www.novalineamusica.org
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