By Daniel Buckwalter
Delgani String Quartet opened its seventh season this past weekend with stops in Corvallis, Salem, Portland and, of course, Eugene.
You have to wear a mask, yes, but fans of Oregon’s foremost string ensemble, based in Eugene, can breathe easy through those masks knowing that they can see the group in person now at the downtown Eugene Christian Science Church, not just virtually on a computer screen as was the case last season.
“It feels like coming home,” Kimberlee Uwate, the viola player told a healthy-sized audience Tuesday night.
It did for the audience, too. It was good to see Uwate, cellist Eric Alterman and violinist Jannie Wei in person again in the Echoes of Song concert.
Then there was the first in-person look at newcomer Anthea Kreston, the first violinist who replaced founder Wyatt True, who is now handling administrative affairs for Delgani full time.
And that was a treat. Kreston lives in Corvallis, but she made her mark in Europe playing in the Berlin-based Artemis Quartet as well as with the Berlin Philharmonic and as concertmaster of the Deutsche Oper Berlin.
She was strong, animated and commanding, especially so in the opening piece, Antonín Dvořák’s Cypresses string quartet. It was the start of what Kreston called Delgani’s “celebration of folk music from different cultures.”
That music included work from Iranian-born Reza Vali, who now lives in Pennsylvania. His String Quartet No. 3 has a strong Persian feel and is well worth going to Delgani’s stream to get a greater appreciation for the three-movement piece, not to mention Persian culture.
Following intermission, Delgani brought in the work of prolific African-American composer Florence Price (“Folksongs in Counterpoint”), and it concluded its Tuesday night concert with Sergei Prokofiev’s String Quartet No. 2 (On Kabardinian Themes) and to a standing ovation.
This was my first time taking in a Delgani concert at its Tuesday night Eugene spot. Typically, I attend the Sunday afternoon concerts.
There is a different vibe to the Tuesday night performance. With the chilly outdoor air and the sanctuary lights darkened, it seems more informal than a Sunday afternoon affair, as if a glass of wine and petting a cat (I have three of them) would suffice if Delgani were not playing at a church.
Still, you can pour yourself that glass of wine, pet your favorite furry companion and listen to Echoes of Song streamed at Delgani.org. It is worth it.
But it was good to see Delgani in person again and to feel the way its interpretation of string quartet music transports an in-person audience. It was good to come home.
