Lento - Alfred Schnittke: Klavierquintett; Shostakovich: Streichquartett Nr. 15, Op. 144
Schnittke's Piano Quintet, a creative response to his mother's death, is an austere, haunting work full of grief and tenderness that marks one of his early ventures into polystylistic writing. The opening piano solo is unique, a spare statement of puzzlement in the face of tragedy. It gives way to a waltz, as if recapturing a lost past, then the graceful dance melody literally disintegrates as the strings venture off into other regions, vainly trying to reassemble the theme and failing. At the end of its touching five movements the music's despair is transformed into serene, hard-won acceptance. Shostakovitch's 15th Quartet, his final statement in that form, premiered just months before his death. It's six slow movements are shot through with contemplative sadness and regret. The music is so rich in texture and substance that attention never flags. Performances of both works could hardly be bettered; Lubimov is an outstanding exponent of modern music (as well as traditional repertory) and he's superb here, as are the Kellers, whose intensity in both works is sustained made the more impactful by ECM's life-like sound.--Dan Davis