She is picture perfect, and can handle four strings with considerable skill. What more could a meloman possibly need to venture to Hasselt? A varied playlist featuring not only Bach and Philip Glass but also Arvo Pärt, Uno Helmersson and one Peter Gregson certainly increases the intrigue. Account of a timelapse between baroque and minimalism at the third edition of the Nordic night(s) festival.
Keeping classical music in the mix at the forefront of contemporary art: it is a noble endeavor to which Mari Samuelsen is happy to lend her frail shoulders. But how do you go about it? In the case of the Norwegian violinist by consciously building a bridge to music from films and popular television series and seeking inspiration from contemporary composers such as Ólafur Arnalds, Jóhann Jóhannsson and Max Richter. With a vague umbrella term, the musical twists and turns of these gentlemen are classified as post-classical. Thin strings, quasi-improvisational piano ramblings and a generous helping of electronics provide the ideal soundtrack for those seeking atmosphere and stillness. The album Nordic Noir that Samuelsen released last year on the Decca label fits perfectly into this picture. It was immediately catapulted to the top of the Norwegian charts. Recordings of classical music that appeal to a wider audience: they are rare and therefore to be treasured.
On Nordic Noir composers such as Uno Helmersson and Arvo Pärt appear, who were also featured on tonight's varied playlist. Yet the concert was anything but an easy run-through of what you and I could have listened to at home on cd. Of course, Helmersson's enchanting Timelapse could not be missing. It is the hit of the album and according to Samuelsen herself also her favorite song. No wonder, then, that it was also performed as an encore. But otherwise they were all pieces that could not be found on the record. Samuelsen opened, with the bright spotlight on her alone, with the famous Chaconne by Bach. Talk about a quirky opener. Anyone who had prepared themselves for an hour and a half of easy listening was thus quickly disappointed. Paradoxically, our graceful blonde made it all look so effortless. Her fingers danced magically across the strings. Carefully considered articulation never hindered the natural flow of the piece. And what to say about the sublime sonorous richness that Samuelsen managed to extract from her Duke of Edinburgh Stradivarius. Naked and yet so complex: this is baroque music that is worlds away from the minimalism that would follow.
Lonely Angel
Especially for this third edition of Nordic night(s), a four-day multidisciplinary arts festival intended to intensify the cultural dialogue between the North and our region, CCHA brought Mari Samuelsen into contact with Casco Phil. The Belgian chamber orchestra under the direction of Ben Haemhouts celebrated its tenth anniversary earlier this year and accompanied attentively, including delicate phrasing, a sense of expression and above all a good ear for dynamic nuance. An early highlight in this way was the hypnotic Echorus by Philip Glass (1995) – one of Samuelsen's favorite composers – in which she performed an increasingly compelling mating dance with both concertmaster Maximilian Lohse and the ensemble. A similar polyphonic entanglement, albeit on a slightly more intimate scale, also occurred during the performance of Bach's fifth prelude and fugue from the first book of Das Wohltemperierte Klavier (BWV 850) and the subsequent Invention (BWV 784). But the first real goosebump moment had already passed. Credit for that goes to one Peter Gregson: a Scottish cellist in his early thirties who recently put Bach's suites in a daring new guise, but is also not averse to writing pieces himself. His Sequence (Four), in which Samuelsen notably took on the mesmerizing role of the synthesizer, remains imprinted in memory through the emotional way in which Casco Phil made its entrance. If repetitive ambient sometimes comes across as cold and calculated by its very nature, that was certainly not the case here.
Scandinavians have no monopoly on Nordic music. "You can hear the characteristics, for example, also reflected in the work of composers from the Baltic states […]". Samuelsen illustrated her words from the program booklet with work by the Latvian Pēteris Vasks and the Estonian Arvo Pärt. Lonely Angel (2006), Vasks' poetic meditation for violin and string orchestra, couples ghostly brooding with timeless simplicity and was performed not only very restrainedly but also refined. A similar spiritual detachment could also be heard at times in Fratres (1977), although Pärt through the gaussian setup of his ingenious sequence of variations explicitly urges the musicians to work towards an energetic climax. Through the combination of fluid bowing and incisive tone formation, the tension was repeatedly heightened. It was equally fascinating to then observe how the ensemble gradually regained serenity. "Fratres is a work I feel very close to. It's under my skin", Samuelsen testifies. And after this performance, likely also under that of many listeners.
The concert ended with Jóhann Jóhannsson's Good Night, Day: a melancholic closer and a poignant tribute to the Icelandic composer who passed away unexpectedly earlier this year. The audience thanked the musicians with a standing ovation. (Post-)classical music has a vibrant future. And an equally compelling past. Much is certain after this evening.
- WHAT: Nordic Noir + minimalistic baroque – work by among others Jóhann Jóhannsson (1969-2018), Philip Glass (°1937), Uno Helmersson (°1977), Peter Gregson (°1987) Arvo Pärt (°1935) and … Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750).
- WHO: Mari Samuelsen (violin) | Casco Phil conducted by Ben Haemhouts
- WHERE: Cultuurcentrum Hasselt (CCHA)
- WHEN: Friday 26 October 2018 – as part of Nordic night(s), third edition of the multidisciplinary festival in honour of the (High) North
- PHOTO CREDIT: © Kaja Bruskeland & Tom Herbots