MUSIC REVIEW : Talich Quartet Opens Series in Fullerton

Czechoslovakia’s Talich String Quartet provided a fine opening to the 30th season of chamber concerts presented by the Fullerton Friends of Music on Sunday at Sunny Hills High School.

Polish and refinement characterized the quartet’s playing, along with solid technical command and sure control. Control, in fact, seemed to be a high priority for the four musicians, who took few risks and approached the music from a rather objective angle. They did not take noticeable liberties with tempos, nor did they add to the composers’ dynamic markings.

Everything on Sunday’s program--which followed a pair of concerts in Los Angeles in the last few days--dated from the 19th Century, yet Talich gave a “classical” account of each composition.

Take Bedrich Smetana’s Second Quartet in D Minor, a relatively short, concise work with built-in tempo and dynamic changes, which the players executed with flawless unanimity. The musicians demonstrated outstanding lyrical capacity: violinists Petr Messiereur and Jan Kvapil, violist Jan Talich and cellist Evzen Rattay each produced a clear, singing tone; collectively, they produced a warm and vibrant sound, full of urgency and drama.

The Smetana was followed by an unusually subtle reading of the Debussy Quartet that was delineated by understatement. Meticulously attentive to nuances at the softer end of the dynamic spectrum, the Talich Quartet proved particularly effective in the middle movements.

Beethoven’s Quartet in F, Opus 135, completed the program. Crisp and clean in the fast movements, thoughtful and probing in the Lento assai, the group brought scope and shape to the composer’s final quartet.

The Presto from Mozart’s Quartet, K. 156, made for a spirited, delightful encore.