Selby & Friends: Trioz, St Andrew's Cathedral, March 20

Peter McCallum, reviewer
March 22, 2007
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WITH goodwill in their hearts and discomfort in their bottoms (courtesy of the protestant severity of the pews of St Andrew's), a generous audience turned out to wish Kathryn Selby and friends well for the first day of the rest of their lives - the first concert of Selby's post-Macquarie Trio existence after its implosion last year.

A member of that trio once said that playing chamber music was like a marriage. You can say that again. As with many postmarital gatherings, there wasn't a Y chromosome in sight. Who needs them? Three strong women, each with a different take on what makes music interesting, make up Trioz. Selby, as the most experienced in this repertoire, kept the tempo moving and maintained musical cohesion when the others were tempted to pause and dwell on a topic.

The violinist Niki Vasilakis is an instinctive, big-boned player with natural feeling for the romance and sweep of the violin sound. She made a fine recording recently of the Bruch Violin Concerto and only has to guard slightly against playing everything as though it were that concerto.

The cellist Emma-Jane Murphy leans forward and grabs each moment with insistent eyes and magnetic intensity, sometimes at the risk of staring down an innocent pleasure. It is refreshing to hear performers who play out and don't always sound as though they are trying to win a competition.

The technical polish is high, but it is the differences and dissonances of personality that create the interest and the chemistry - enough chemistry in fact, to make a marriage.
Beethoven's Kakadu Variations was like three ice-skaters doing fascinating warm-ups but in separate parts of the rink. The opening adagio was on the slow side and the drawn-out lines tended to lack tension. Mendelssohn's C minor Trio seemed made for these players.

Ravel's great Piano Trio of 1914 was played with virtuosic command and fearless projection. Occasionally the performance could have benefited from more rhythmic discipline and reserve. With friends like these, who needs marriage?

Copyright © 2007. The Sydney Morning Herald.