The Academy of St Martin within the Fields is presently marking the centenary of the delivery of its founder and conductor, Neville Marriner. However these queueing for returns at Wigmore Corridor for the live performance by the Academy’s Chamber Ensemble have been hoping not simply to affix within the anniversary celebrations, but in addition to welcome Murray Perahia again to the live performance platform after a six-year absence. For 30 years now Perahia’s profession has been blighted by a hand harm, which has pressured lengthy intervals away from the live performance corridor, and plenty of of his admirers will need to have feared that his most up-to-date absence might properly grow to be a everlasting one.
However Perahia’s lengthy historical past with the ASMF – he made many recordings with Marriner and the group, and he has been its principal visitor conductor since 2005 – evidently persuaded him to make not less than a quick return as a part of this month’s celebration, taking the stage in a efficiency of Schumann’s Piano Quintet, the centrepiece of the ensemble’s live performance. It’s not a piece with a very outstanding piano half – the pianist could be very a lot one in all a group – however there have been sufficient moments within the efficiency – the nice and cozy pearly piano sound and textural readability, the proper weight of the tiniest element – to supply reminders of why Perahia is thought to be one of many best gamers of his technology, and to encourage the hope that he would possibly quickly be again enjoying extra repeatedly.
The ASMF’s present director Joshua Bell took over as first violin for the efficiency of Mendelssohn’s Octet that adopted the Schumann, encouraging a extra flamboyant strategy than earlier than. His dynamism definitely launched the efficiency with nice verve, however typically – within the light-as-air scherzo and the whirlwind finale particularly – a barely extra measured strategy and better care over articulation might need made it really feel much less cluttered. One other string octet had opened the live performance – the Partita by Sally Beamish (who had as soon as been a viola participant within the ASMF and was its first composer-in-residence); a taut, efficient piece which takes concepts from Mendelssohn’s work because the beginning factors for every of its three actions.
