Chausson’s Concert for Violin, Piano, and String Quartet: A Glorious Hybrid

Completed in 1891, Ernest Chausson’s Concert for Violin, Piano, and String Quartet, Op. 21 is a glorious hybrid.

With the violin and piano functioning as solo protagonists set against the larger ensemble of the quartet, its musical dialogue resembles the Baroque concerto grosso. Brimming with bold virtuosity, it takes us on a dramatic journey that is virtually unique in the chamber music repertoire. The unusual title, suggesting a “harmonious ensemble,” recalls the Concerts royaux of French Baroque composer François Couperin.

A student of César Franck and Jules Massenet at Paris Conservatoire, Chausson (1855-1899) was born into a wealthy family. His father was a civil engineering contractor who assisted Haussmann in the grand reconstruction of Paris in the 1850s. A polymath, Chausson studied law and excelled in literature and painting. He hosted salon gatherings which included Debussy, Monet, and Mallarmé. In his mid-twenties, Chausson fell under the spell of the music of Wagner, making frequent trips to Munich and Bayreuth. Chausson left behind a small body of work which includes chamber music, songs, a symphony, and the famous Poème for violin and orchestra. A tragic bicycle accident cut his life short at the age of 44.

The first movement (Décidé – Calme – Animé) begins with a declamatory three-note motif which forms the seed out of which the work develops. As with the music of Franck, the Concert unfolds cyclically, with motifs recurring and evolving throughout the four movements. With sweeping sonic waves in the piano, and restless Wagnerian chromaticism, the movement soars to heroic heights. Only at the final cadence does the three-note motif find serene repose.

French composer Vincent d’Indy described the second movement (Sicilienne: Pas vite) as “the gardens where bloom the charming fancies of a Gabriel Fauré.” Set in 6/8 time, it is a graceful, lilting dance. In the Baroque period, the siciliana, a slow jig, carried pastoral connotations. This is the music of majestic, sun-drenched landscapes and quiet, wistful nostalgia. 

The third movement (Grave) begins with a mysterious snaking chromatic line in the piano. For a moment, the music drifts without a tonal center. The violin enters with a lamenting statement, thematically related to the preceding Sicilienne, as the piano’s chromatic line continues to slither. Gradually, the music grows in intensity, its terrifying voices shrieking in anguish. In the final haunting bars, time seems suspended. The snaking line moves from the piano’s highest register to its ghostly depths.

In the brilliant, soaring final movement (Finale. Très animé), themes from the previous movements return in a motivic flood. The movement begins as a wild, exuberant dance filled with irregular phrases, and grows with passionate, euphoric energy. The three-note motif from the work’s opening returns triumphantly before the sunny final cadence.

The Concert’s premiere took place in Brussels on February 26, 1892 with Eugène Ysaÿe performing the solo violin part.

I. Décidé – Calme – Animé:

II. Sicilienne: Pas vite:

III. Grave:

IV. Finale. Très animé:

Five Great Recordings

Featured Image: Still Life with a Curtain (1895), Paul Cézanne

About Timothy Judd

A native of Upstate New York, Timothy Judd has been a member of the Richmond Symphony violin section since 2001. He is a graduate of the Eastman School of Music where he earned the degrees Bachelor of Music and Master of Music, studying with world renowned Ukrainian-American violinist Oleh Krysa.

The son of public school music educators, Timothy Judd began violin lessons at the age of four through Eastman’s Community Education Division. He was a student of Anastasia Jempelis, one of the earliest champions of the Suzuki method in the United States.

A passionate teacher, Mr. Judd has maintained a private violin studio in the Richmond area since 2002 and has been active coaching chamber music and numerous youth orchestra sectionals.

In his free time, Timothy Judd enjoys working out with Richmond’s popular SEAL Team Physical Training program.

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