Contemporary Valentine from the JACK Quartet and Ursula Oppens

Charles T. Downey, JACK Quartet offers lively interpretations of new music at Library of Congress series
Washington Post, February 17, 2014

Feldman, Spring of Chosroes, P. Zukofsky, U. Oppens (CP2, 1991)

An important mission of the concert series at the Library of Congress is to commission and present new works of contemporary music. Both aspects of that role were showcased Friday night, as the JACK Quartet, leading specialists in new music, performed a program of music mostly from the last half-century, including two pieces commissioned by the Library of Congress.

The oldest music in the concert was composed by Morton Feldman, beginning with “Spring of Chosroes,” commissioned by the Library’s McKim Fund in 1977. Pianist Ursula Oppens premiered the work with its dedicatee, violinist Paul Zukofsky, and she performed it here with Ari Streisfeld, one of the JACK violinists. Like Feldman’s “Structures” for string quartet, from 1951, this is understated, heavily repetitive music, but it diverts rather than bores because Feldman introduces unexpected, minute variations into those repetitions. [Continue reading]

JACK Quartet and Ursula Oppens, piano
Feldman, Spring of Chosroes / Structures
Ferneyhough, Exordium: Elliotti Carteri in honorem centenarii
Carter, Piano Quintet
Adès, Piano Quintet
Julian Anderson, String Quartet No. 1 ("Light Music," U.S. premiere)
Library of Congress

PREVIOUSLY:
Charles T. Downey, JACK Quartet @ NGA (June 4, 2012)
Michael Lodico, Library of Congress Begins Carter Tribute (May 31, 2008)
---, Brentano's Late Style (May 3, 2008)