The University of Oregon School of Music and Dance frequently puts on free admission performances for students, and on Nov. 4, the School of Music welcomed the Zemlinsky Quartet, a world-renowned string quartet from Prague, to Beall Concert Hall. The 90-minute concert held in the Frohnmayer Music Building was an evening of pure talent.
The Zemlinsky Quartet was founded in 1994 and consists of four members: František Souček and Petr Střížek on violins, Petr Holman on viola and Vladimír Fortin on cello. Eunhye Grace Choi accompanied the quartet on piano, and UO Associate Professor of Clarinet Dr. Wonkak Kim.
The concert opened with Mozart’s “Stadler Quintet,” which featured the quartet alongside Dr. Kim. The piece was a highlight of the night; the musicians were animated as they played and interacted with each other, using their body language to convey the emotion and feeling of the music.
As the five played together, this piece beautifully showcased the relationship between string instruments and the clarinet. As an allegro, this piece was upbeat and had seamless transitions between all the instruments involved.
The audience was filled with students and community members. Specifically, there were a lot of students who studied clarinet under Dr. Kim and came to watch him at his craft.
“This performance in particular is pretty fruitful. They’re from Prague and we actually got to hear them play a little bit in studio class today,” Lei Voyce, a music education major and student of Dr. Kim, said. “I’m very excited to hear them perform together.”
The Zemlinsky Quartet performs regularly in the Czech Republic and all around the world. However, this was not their first appearance in Eugene. The first act was followed by a brief intermission where Dr. Kim addressed the audience, providing background on how they ended up here.
“They were here about seven years ago, so it’s a return for them. I hope you enjoy it and they will be here again,” Dr. Kim said.
Dr. Kim shared with the audience that the quartet reached out after their U.S. and Canada tour was cancelled, looking for a place to perform. That’s when Dr. Kim put together this show at the last minute. With the quality of the performance, one would have thought this had been in the books for months.
The second act brought out Choi on piano for Alexander Borodin’s Piano Quintet in C minor. This piece had three parts, all showcasing the strong chemistry between the piano and strings. Choi was an excellent pianist and worked very well with the members of the quartet. Perfectly in sync and using the music to communicate, the performers were beyond talented.
The concert ended with Sergei Prokofiev’s Overture on Hebrew Themes, Op. 34, which involved piano, clarinet and string quartet. This piece was the perfect way to round out the performance. Watching the six performers interact during this piece was like magic; the eye contact and interactions between the musicians is what made it hard to believe this show was last-minute.
The concert ended with a standing ovation and a big thank you to the crowd. Attendees had a chance to speak with the musicians afterwards and applaud them for their spectacular performance.
There are plenty more music events being hosted by the School of Music and Dance throughout the year that are free for UO students with their ID. Upcoming events include The Oregon Wind Symphony and Campus Band Concert on Nov. 19, Hip Hop/Pop Ensemble Concert on Nov. 21, Elsewhere Ensemble: Animalia Musicalia on Nov. 23 and much more.
