Above: Fritz Kreisler
~ Author: Oberon
Sunday March 8th, 2026 – Six prominent violinists – Benjamin Beilman, Paul Huang, Sean Lee, Richard Lin, Danbi Um, and Aaron Boyd (the last-named doubling on viola) – joined cellist Mihai Marica and pianists Sahun Sam Hong and Orion Weiss for an evening of music-making honoring the memory of the great Fritz Kreisler.
I remember listening – as a small child – with my grandmother to her 78s of Kreisler on her phonograph. I would often dance around her parlour, enjoying the melodies and rhythms in all their scratchy splendour. When LPs came out, my mom – who favoured Dean Martin and the Andrews Sisters – did have one ‘classical collection’ that had a Kreisler track on it (along with my first taste of opera arias from Lily Pons and Kirsten Flagstad…the earliest symptoms of my addiction to Verdi and Wagner).
But enough nostalgia for now…
Today’s concert opened with Eugène Ysaÿe’s Rêve d’enfant for Violin and Piano, Op. 14. From its dreamy start, Benjamin Beilman and Orion Weiss savoured the music’s gorgeous flow. A lullaby-like atmosphere was finely sustained, though a bout of coughing in the hall (one of several audience distractions today) nearly spoiled things.
A selection from Henryk Wieniawski’s Etudes-Caprices for Two Violins, Op. 18, brought together the lovely Danbi Um (in a striking, ruffled black frock) and Paul Huang. The first of these short duets veered from pensive to animated; the second was a lively feast of notes.
Richard Strauss’s Sonata in E-flat major for Violin and Piano, Op. 18 was the most substantial work performed today. It was composed in 1887, the year the composer met the soprano Pauline de Ahna, who would become his wife. She may have inspired the romantic lyricism of the sonata.
The tall, elegant violinist Richard Lin was ideally partnered here by Mr. Weiss. The opening Allegro ma non troppo, has a passionate feel; it opens with a song-like theme introduced by the piano and finishes in a state of epic virtuosity. The ensuing Andante cantabile has an improvisational air about it; it is poignant…with traces of irony. The concluding Andante/Allegro has a darkish start, with a burst of passion that gives way to tenderness. Rolling arpeggios from the keyboard underscore Mr. Lin’s sublime playing. The piece rises to a soaring finish, eliciting a heartfelt ovation from the crowd.
After the interval, a pianist new to me – Sahun Sam Hong – took over the Steinway for a marathon of thirteen shorter works, composed by – or arranged by – Fritz Kreisler. What on paper looked like a case of “too much of a good thing” turned out instead to be an engrossing festival of music, ranging from the poetic to the thrillingly virtuosic, with an abundance of priceless moments along the way. Mr. Hong’s playing throughout was so persuasive; I’ll look forward to hearing him again.
Mr. Hong remained at piano as the violinists came and went, sometimes saluting one another as they crossed paths. Ben Beilman’s Caprice viennois set a high standard, which was maintained throughout the program. Paul Huang’s minuetto in the style of Pugnani, Danbi Um’s Midnight Bells, Richard Lin’s Tambourin chinois, and Aaron Boyd’s polished Variations on a Theme of Corelli offered subtle contrasts of timbre and technique. Danbi Um’s Slavonic fantasie drew murmurs of appreciation from the audience, recognizing Dvorak’s immortal Songs My Mother Taught Me; this was followed immediately by Mendelssohn’s “Song without Words”, serenely played by Mr. Lin.
Paul Huang brought gypsy flair to La gitana, and Sean Lee’s Sicilienne and Rigaudon brought his suavely polished playing to the fore. Mr. Beilman offered a rarity: the Hymn To The Sun from Rimsky-Korsakov’s COQ D’OR…a special treat for my opera-loving ears.
The three concluding works – perhaps Kreisler’s best-loved and most frequently-heard pieces – carried me back to my grandmother’s house, where I first heard them decades ago. Mr. Boyd’s Schön Rosmarin was especially meaningful to me…and so perfectly played. Mr. Boyd then took up his viola to join the ensemble of all the evening’s artists (and the wonderful cellist, Mihai Marica) for two beloved Kreisler souvenirs: Liebeslied and Liebesfreud. These works, laced with traces of rubato, made my trip down memory lane this evening especially touching.
Performance photo by Cherylynn Tsushima, courtesy of Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center
~ Oberon
Oberon's Glade 