About Last Night

Terry Teachout on the arts in New York City

TT: Here’s how

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I went to a classical concert last night about which you probably haven’t yet heard–though I expect you will.


The Elements String Quartet, a comparatively new ensemble (it was founded in 1999), recently commissioned 16 composers to write short pieces for string quartet inspired by evocative photographs of the composers’ own choosing–wedding photos, pictures of their parents, candid snapshots, vacation scenes, whatever. The Elements Quartet has been previewing these pieces throughout 2003, and on Tuesday the group played all 16 at Manhattan’s Merkin Concert Hall.


Here are some striking things about “Snapshots,” the title given by the quartet to this project, which was underwritten by a foundation called Premiere Commission, Inc.:


  • The string-quartet literature is all but devoid of short, free-standing pieces. Quartet programs generally consist of three or four large-scale works. The 16 “Snapshots” pieces, by contrast, can be used invidiually to open or close a program–or played as encores–in addition to being performed as a full-evening unit. They can also be programmed in smaller groupings of three or four pieces at a time.

  • The “Snapshots” pieces are widely and exceptionally varied in style. Some are light, others fairly weighty (though never ponderous). A few of the composers, like John Corigliano and David Del Tredici, are well known in the classical-music world, but most are less familiar. Several of the pieces are by non-classical composers, including Lenny Pickett, the musical director for Saturday Night Live, and jazz musicians Regina Carter and John Patitucci.

  • All 16 pieces are immediately accessible to the untutored ear. (Most, in fact, are unabashedly tonal.)

  • The members of the Elements Quartet talked to the audience from the stage about several of the pieces and the photos that inspired them, and introduced all the composers who came to the concert. This sort of thing is standard operating procedure for the group, which is known for its informal on-stage demeanor.

  • Theater designer Wendall K. Harrington took the 16 photos and wove them into a handsome-looking evening-long video that was shown during the concert on a large screen placed on stage behind the Elements Quartet. (The actual photos were hung in an upstairs gallery where a post-concert reception was held.)

  • Merkin Hall was full. I’ve never seen so large and enthusiastic a crowd at a program consisting entirely of new music for string quartet.

    What about the music? Well, I liked eight pieces, disliked four, and didn’t feel strongly either way about the other four–a staggeringly high batting average for a new-music program. I was particularly impressed by Justine Chen’s “Ancient Airs and Dances,” John Corigliano’s “Circa 1909,” Daron Hagen’s “Snapshot: Gwen and Earl’s Wedding Day, December 20th, 1951,” Paul Moravec’s “Vince and Jan: 1945,” and Chen Yi’s “Burning” (the only 9/11-inspired work), all of which I want to hear again as soon as possible. Also noteworthy was Sebastian Currier’s “REM,” the shortest work on the program, a brilliantly effective little scherzo that will make a terrific encore piece.


    Aside from the music, what struck me most forcibly about “Snapshots” was the extent to which it departed from prevailing norms of classical concertizing without degenerating into silliness or pandering. Unlike the Kronos Quartet in its heyday, the members of the Elements Quartet don’t wear outr

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