With flying fingers and intense, emotive sagas, the Classical Guitar Ensembles from the U’s School of Music provided an excellent showcase of a variety of styles and tunes from different eras and countries.
Each musician throughout the night rose eloquently to their time in the spotlight, whether it was a riff in a quartet or an entire set devoted to the guitarist. Each of these pieces were great, but the most entertaining part of each performance was listening to the ways in which each artist implemented their own spin on the songs.
For example, pieces such as “Canzonnett,” performed by Gemma Clark, Gren Krumel and Fabio Xavier, were calm and serene. They carried an intriguing Irish-folk sound most do not typically associate with guitar. Many other pieces, such as the “Grave Allegre,” sounded as if they were written for a 19th century quartet.
Jordan Huston again contrasted from the traditional guitar sound again when he played “Andante” by Torroba. And while this performance was definitely classical, his entrance was anything but. Upon arriving onstage, Jordan knocked over a stand by accident, promptly crying “rock and roll,” much to the delight of the audience.
“Andante” was one of the most emotive and relaxing performances of the night, evoking an image of a moonlit and romantic gondola ride around Venice.
The love Huston had for this piece was evident. He added a flair to his hand motions as he strummed, his head bobbed along to the rhythm and his whole body followed the rise and fall of the music.
Alyssa Jorgensen’s performance of “Prelude Triste,” however, was the most emotional performance of the night. Jorgensen’s style included resonant, clear high notes, almost giving the piece a harp-sounding quality, the clearness attesting to her skill. The performance was stunning, perfectly capturing the haunting mood of the prelude.
Another one of the most interesting pieces in regards to the diversity of style was “Prelude (1s Lute Suite),” performed by Austin Gren and composed by Johann Sebastian Bach, who is much more well known for his symphonies.
Though lacking the whole orchestra, the piece still demonstrated many musical hallmarks of the “house Bach style” with resolving chords, rich trills and sweeping melodies translated onto the guitar rifts.
While there are no more guitar ensembles this semester, students can still see performances by the School of Music’s musicians. The New Music Ensemble plays on Monday at 7:30 p.m. at Gardner Hall; the Choir Concert and the Crosstalk (electronic music) occur at the same time and place on Tuesday; and the Faculty Recital happens on Thursday at the same location.
All performances are free for students with a valid UCard.