May 7, 2021
Streamed from the Schwartz Center for Performing Arts, Emory University
Jessica Shuang Wu, violin; Yinzi Kong, viola; Guang Wang, cello; William Ransom, piano
BRAHMS: Piano Quartet No. 1 in G minor, Op. 25
MARK GRESHAM | 08 MAY 2021
On Friday at noon, the 2020-21 season of the Emory Chamber Music Society of Atlanta (ECMSA) drew to a close with a performance of the Piano Quartet in G Minor of Johannes Brahms, the only work on the program. The Cooke Noontime Series concert, featuring members of the Vega String Quartet (violinist Jessica Shuang Wu, violist Yinzi Kong, and cellist Guang Wang) and pianist William Ransom, was streamed from Emerson Hall of the Schwartz Center for Performing Arts.
The Vega Quartet is currently a trio, with the position of first violin currently vacant. The search process to fill the position has been delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic and Emory University’s on-campus pandemic restrictions.
In the meantime, a piano quartet is one of multiple ways of dealing with the vacancy. Other solutions this season have included inviting David Coucheron, concertmaster of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, to sit in as guest first violin, as well as performing in collaborative concerts with other performers.
What we got in this particular instance was the three Vegas and Ransom was a robust, no-nonsense performance that leaned primarily upon the energy and high spirits of the young Brahms — in particular, the exciting final “Rondo alla zingarese” (“Gypsy Rondo”), notable for its difficulty, rhythmic and metrical complexity.
Both before and after the somewhat brief concert, Ransom, ECMSA’s artistic director and an indefatigable promoter, made sure to inform listeners about the upcoming Highlands-Cashiers Chamber Music Festival, of which he is also artistic director. This summer marks the Festival’s 40th Anniversary season, in which the regular concert series will run from July 5 through August 8 – whether concerts are presented live as planned or wind up being streamed video only.
“Under the current covid 19 state of the country,” says the Festival’s website, “the future is uncertain, but we are optimistic and are moving forward…” with programming both international artists and perennial festival favorites from Atlanta. Under the assumption there will be live concerts, the series will be presented on Fridays and Sundays at the Highlands Performing Arts Center in Highlands, North Carolina, and Saturdays and Mondays at the Village Green Commons in nearby Cashiers. ■
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