By Liv Paggiarino
The stage was simple, bare. Six plain white panels hid the backstage area, and the curtains were drawn. Four black chairs were arranged in a half-circle front and center, music stands in front of each. Four men dressed in black walked in procession and sat down, their shoes clicking against the stage and their instruments glossy and eye-catching.
As each musician sat himself, flipped the music sheet to the right page, and positioned his body just so, a sense of anticipation filled the room. With one sharp movement of the elbow, the tension broke.
The silence cast over the audience was so profound that even in the balcony, viewers could hear the sharp intake of breath from the musicians as classical music flowed from their strings. The men’s bows cut through the air, perfectly in sync at first, then with increasing variation, developing into a unique, multifaceted complexity.
The smooth symphony of sounds that came from inside of the Missouri Theatre on Thursday, Oct.9 was from the renowned Philharmonia Quartett Berlin. Violin players Daniel Stabrawa, Christian Stadelmann and Neithard Resa, along with cellist Dietmar Schwalke, were brought together 20 years ago with late violoncellist Jan Diesselhorst to serve as the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra’s string quartet. They are known as “Four of the Best” by the British Press, and have held concerts all over the world, from South America to Europe.
While in Columbia, the group’s performance was brief, but long enough to leave an impression with their soft German accents and simple yet captivating performance style. A standing ovation awaited the four at the end of the night, and in response the group decided to “slow it down a bit” for one last encore piece by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Réquiem KV 626, Lacrimosa.
If you missed the performance of the Philharmonia Quartett Berlin, check out a video of the group performing a piece by Beethoven in 2011 here. For more information about the group and its performances all over the world, visit http://www.philharmonia-quartett-berlin.de/ .
The Missouri Atlas 