Friday, February 21, 2025, 1:15AM |  20°
MENU
Advertisement
The Orion String Quartet (Left: Todd Phillips, Daniel Phillips, Timothy Eddy and Steven Tenenbom) gave their 14th performance on the Chamber Music Pittsburgh concert series with flutist Tara O'Connor.
1
MORE

Concert review: Flutist Tara O'Connor steals the spotlight with members of the Orion String Quartet

Andreas Hafenscher

Concert review: Flutist Tara O'Connor steals the spotlight with members of the Orion String Quartet

Monday was the 14th time that the Orion String Quartet has performed in the Chamber Music Pittsburgh series. What has led the presenting organization to engage the group so often?

One reason is the group’s violinists, Daniel and Todd Phillips, brothers whose late father performed with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra for nearly 40 years until he retired in 1987. The quartet also has a strong national reputation and has been booked by the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center in New York, the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society and the Sante Fe Chamber Music Festival. The group has also appeared on National Public Radio’s “Performance Today.”

Their recent Pittsburgh appearance — the second concert of Chamber Music Pittsburgh’s annual series at Carnegie Music Hall — included music by Mozart with Grammy-nominated flutist Tara O’Connor, Dvorak and Leon Kirchner. The concert had some standout moments, but these were overshadowed by technical issues.

Advertisement

The evening began with Ms. O’Connor performing Mozart’s Flute Quartet No. 3 in C major, in which the flute replaces the first violin of a standard quartet. Her sound had the perfect balance of warmth and elegance, and she was a delight to listen to, breathing life into the music from the first phrases. 

Kirchner’s String Quartet No. 2 featured tight, well-rehearsed playing from all four members of the quartet. Violist Steven Tenenbom anchored the first movement with impeccable rhythm throughout even the snarliest passages. The playing in the first two movements was a bit sluggish, though they sold the final movement with gusto.

The Dvorak, likewise, was generally satisfactory, but lacked enthusiasm and energy until the finale. Here, cellist Timothy Eddy shone, giving the drama of the movement’s solo gambit a jaunty flair. Intonation proved inconsistent in the quartet’s second movement, and some of the more virtuosic violin licks in the finale weren’t clean. Occasional intonation slips aren’t worth quibbling about—but when these slips distract from the feeling of the music, they have an effect on the concert as a whole.

For the sake of variety, it may be time to bring some new blood into Chamber Music Pittsburgh’s series.

Advertisement

Jeremy Reynolds: jreynolds@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1634; twitter: @Reynolds_PG.

First Published: October 3, 2017, 8:56 p.m.

RELATED
SHOW COMMENTS (0)  
Join the Conversation
Commenting policy | How to Report Abuse
If you would like your comment to be considered for a published letter to the editor, please send it to letters@post-gazette.com. Letters must be under 250 words and may be edited for length and clarity.
Partners
Advertisement
Longtime KDKA-TV host Jon Burnett on May 22, 2019.
1
a&e
Jon Burnett, long a KDKA-TV staple, leaves legacy of ‘putting good out into the world’
The Breezewood Interchange is dotted with gas stations, chain restaurants and souvenir shops. The Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission has selected Chicago-based Alfred Benesch and Company to spearhead a major redesign of the notorious roadway.
2
business
So long, Breezewood: Chicago firm selected to redesign infamous Pa. Turnpike interchange
Texas Rangers starting pitcher Andrew Heaney throws during the first inning of a baseball game against the Seattle Mariners Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024, in Arlington, Texas.
3
sports
Sources: Pirates signing left-hander Andrew Heaney to 1-year, $5.25 million deal
Saraswati Adhikari and her family, not pictured, work with attorneys Jillian Lukac, Elizabeth Tuttle, and Larry Lebowitz to fill out paperwork to become United States citizens during a volunteer event organized by Jewish Family and Community Services Immigration Legal Services and the Bhutanese Community Association of Pittsburgh, Saturday, Feb. 23, 2019, at the Whitehall Public Library in Whitehall.
4
news
Allegheny County will kick in $224,000 for refugee settlement services after federal funds are cut off
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro delivers his budget address for the 2025-26 fiscal year  at the Capitol, Feb. 4,  in Harrisburg, Pa.
5
news
Trump taps Shapiro to join bipartisan governor's council
The Orion String Quartet (Left: Todd Phillips, Daniel Phillips, Timothy Eddy and Steven Tenenbom) gave their 14th performance on the Chamber Music Pittsburgh concert series with flutist Tara O'Connor.  (Andreas Hafenscher)
Andreas Hafenscher
Advertisement
LATEST ae
Advertisement
TOP
Email a Story