REVIEW: Chamber concert features contrasting Czech music

By George C. Ford

CEDAR RAPIDS - Antonin Dvorak and Leos Janacek were both Czech composers, but that's where the similarity ended at Saturday (2/27) evening's Orchestra Iowa Chamber concert.

Violinists Eric Kline and Miera Kim, violist Lisa Ponton and cellist Carey Bostian opened the concert with Janacek's String Quartet No. 2 "Intimate Letters." The composition was written as the composer's expression of love for Kamila Stosslova, a 25-year-old married woman with a small child who did not understand or return his feelings.

Janacek's infatuation with Stosslova, who considered the much older composer strictly a friend, is evident in the opening movement that was inspired by their initial meeting at a health spa. The second and third movements explore Janacek's vision of Kamila giving birth to a son and his mental image of her.

The final movement, marked by frequent mood and tempo changes, brings the composition to an impassioned conclusion.

Kudos are in order for the Orchestra Iowa quartet for creating a memorable performance of Janacek's composition.

By contrast, Dvorak's “Wind Serenade in D Minor” evokes the old-world atmosphere where the music of the aristocracy and common people merged.

Under the direction of Maestro Timothy Hankewich, the serenade was thoroughly enjoyable with its Czech folk music themes. The interplay between the woodwinds, horns, cello and double bass was perfectly executed.

In keeping with the flavor of Saturday's concert, “Czech Mates,” the reception after the concert at Westminster Presbyterian Church featured various kinds of kolaches.

It was a mouthwatering end to the evening.