Intercontinental Ensemble: Arc
TRPTK

Countless chamber ensembles exist, which makes it a challenge for one to separate itself from the pack. While a number of things recommend Intercontinental Ensemble as a particularly distinguished case, two things above all else argue vehemently in its favour: the youthful enthusiasm with which its nine members invest their playing, and the maturity and exceptional calibre of musicianship they demonstrate in their performances.

Arriving a year after 2021's splendid In Motu, Arc is the Amsterdam-based nonet's third album, and it's important to clarify right away that they're very different projects. Whereas the earlier one's selections constellate around a motion theme with radiant readings of lively works by Mendelssohn, Rota, and Martinu, the new one centres on female composers, a concept that developed out of a programme idea the Amsterdam Grachtenfestival pitched to the group in August 2019. Performed at the concert were Collage van een achtvlak by Bianca Bongers (1987), the Nonet in E-flat major, Op. 38 by Louise Farrenc (1804-75), and an arrangement of Drei Romanzen, Op. 21 by Clara Schumann (1819-96), all three of which were enthusiastically received and in turn laid the groundwork for the group's latest TRPTK album. Augmenting them are two additional pieces, Emotional Diversity and September I, by Aregnaz Martirosyan (1993) and Sarah Neutkens (1998), respectively.

Rather than titling the album with something signifying its female-centric focus, the group chose a less obvious one. The move proved to be a smart one, as Elle, to cite one hypothetical example, while not inappropriate would perhaps have been too reductive. Arc, on the other hand, suggests a bridge from one generation to another, as well as the internal connections that lend a work structure and cohesiveness; further to that, the title evokes the concept of narrative arc and thus the notion of dramatic development from exposition on through climax and resolution. Recorded in October 2021 at Westvest Church in Schiedam, Arc sees the group's four string and five wind players performing works by Dutch, Armenian, French, and German composers.

The change in tone from In Motu to Arc is apparent the moment Bongers' Collage van een achtvlak (Collage of an octahedron) opens the recording with an intricately structured setting that's by turns contemplative, explorative, and ruminative. The jaggedness of the work's rhythms might suggest some degree of commonality with Louis Andriessen's writing, but the piece is hardly a lesser accomplishment for doing so. In the ensemble's rendering, clarity of expression is paramount, in both the writing and the playing of the ensemble, and the group's intonation is crystal clear, just as it is throughout the album. Martirosyan's Emotional Diversity is arguably even more explorative in the way it ventures down bold experimental pathways during its eight-minute run. If tension permeates the writing, its presence can be traced to events that were happening in Martirosyan's world when it was written, namely the deadly conflict that broke out between Armenia and Azerbaijan in September 2020. Arguably the album's loveliest setting is Neutkens' plaintive meditation September I, so titled to convey the melancholy engendered by summer's passing.

Performed in an arrangement by violinist Ernst Spyckerelle, the three-movement Schumann piece immediately engages for the alluring melodic content of its graceful “Andante” and thereafter maintains interest with its sprightly, minute-long central part and elegantly flowing “Agitato.” At thirty minutes, Farrenc's Nonet in E-flat major is the recording's dominant work, even if it's sequenced last. The ensemble achieves a symphonic grandeur in its rendition, and the chamber material proves to be the perfect showcase for the group. After Intercontinental Ensemble sustains the graceful majesty of the opening movement for an absorbing eleven minutes, the andante-styled second charms with its harmonious lilt, the scherzo with infectious energy, and the concluding allegro with breezy counterpoint. Remarkable degrees of balance and clarity are achieved in Farrenc's writing, and the ensemble's to be commended for recognizing the value of the work and including it in the set-list.

March 2022