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Et in Arcadia Ego | Adelaide Festival 2022 review

This was an excellently curated program, combining recent Australian works with standards of the repertoire.

Et in Arcadia Ego, by the Australian Wind Quintet. Picture: Tony Lewis, supplied
Et in Arcadia Ego, by the Australian Wind Quintet. Picture: Tony Lewis, supplied

Et in Arcadia Ego – Resonance: Chamber Landscapes

ADELAIDE FESTIVAL

Classical Music

UKARIA Cultural Centre

March 12

In Et in Arcadia Ego, the Australian Wind Quintet convincingly demonstrated the versatility and range of its chamber ensemble format.

This was an excellently curated program, combining recent Australian works with standards of the repertoire.

On the program was Catherine Likhuta’s beautiful and melancholic 2017 work Lesions. This work’s four movements explore the stages of dealing with an incurable illness: sadness, anxiety, denial and acceptance. Originally composed for clarinet, horn and cello, this version (substituting bassoon for cello) was even more effective.

The concert also featured the premiere of Elizabeth Younan’s vibrant second wind quintet Kismet, played with suitable vitality.

Et in Arcadia Ego, by the Australian Wind Quintet. Picture: Tony Lewis, supplied
Et in Arcadia Ego, by the Australian Wind Quintet. Picture: Tony Lewis, supplied

The concert’s title was taken from Elliott Gyger’s 2016 wind quintet, which was the centrepiece of the program. According to Gyger, the work was intended to contrast the light and playful miniatures that make up the majority of the wind quintet repertoire. It is an expansive, single-movement piece, gradually building in tension over an extended period of time. Gyger creates a multitude of textures, employing extensive trills and flutter tonguing to great effect, and the recurring open octaves were played with impressive intonation.

Book-ending the program were György Ligeti’s Six Bagatelles and Igor Stravinksy’s Suite from Pulcinella. The ensemble played the Ligeti with astounding precision, and really captured the frenetic character of the first, fourth and final movements.

Coming at the end of such an intense and effervescent program, the neo-classical Pulcinella Suite seemed rather tame by comparison. But the nuanced and sensitive phrasing from all five musicians was absolutely captivating.

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