>> David Plylar:
Hello, my name is David Plylar
and welcome to Concerts
from the Library of Congress.
I'm here with members
of the Quatuor Van Kuijk
and they are here to speak
with me about their program
that they're presenting
in the Great Hall of
the Library of Congress.
We had a flood in the Coolidge
Auditorium that pushed us
out of that venue into
something completely new.
so please join me in welcoming
our guests from afar.
and it's such a pleasure to
have you here.
Thanks for being here.
>> Emmanuel Franois:
Thank you.
I thought maybe what
we could do is just talk a bit
about this wonderful program
that you put together for us
and maybe just say a few
things about each piece.
and so the first piece on the
program is a new work. Is this--
I think that this will be the US
premiere of it by
Benjamin Attahir and--
Excellent.
Maybe you can tell
me a bit about--
This is a very interesting
composer I've listened to.
I've been kind of getting to
know his music a bit
since you programmed it, but
maybe you can say
what it's like.
Your experience with it so far
as a string quartet.
>> Anthony Kondo: so, yeah,
this piece of Benjamin
is very interesting.
so it's called Al Icha,
which means a prayer.
and it's very--
it starts with this unison
of the string quartet.
so it's very powerful.
We can really hear all the
things of the string quartet,
the unison, the energy.
and then there's a lot of
Oriental influences
also in his music,
and it's very intense.
There's a fugue, which
is about four pages, and it's--
you have this feeling
of something building,
increases the energy.
and then when it released,
you just have this feeling of
four pages in your head
and then it really isn't--
it's very strong.
>> David Plylar: Wow. Wow.
so was this-- how long
have you had this piece?
Have you performed it elsewhere?
>> Emmanuel Franois: Yes, I
think the premiere was in Paris,
one year ago for the Biennale
of the string quartet.
and then we premiered it.
We played it for the
first time in Germany,
in Berlin Concert House
a few weeks ago.
and we recently also
performed it in Milano.
>> David Plylar:
That's wonderful.
Do you have-- do you play
a lot of contemporary music?
I know that your
discography is mostly
Mozart and Mendelssohn
and things like that,
but is this something
that you see yourself
doing more of or...
>> Anthony Kondo: Everywhere,
every year we come on the piece
because I think it's also our
job to make the music of today
more alive and so
to give opportunities
to composers to compose.
so yes, it's very important.
>> Emmanuel Franois: I
think we don't play that much
contemporary music. It's not--
because we don't like it.
It's mostly because we
usually have many projects
like the Mendelssohn cycle,
like the French music,
and that takes us a lot of time.
and maybe we don't have
enough time to focus on
contemporary music. and also
the other reason is probably
because we love to work
with living composers
and it's kind of expensive
to command some pieces.
and so we do it
only once a year.
and but it's a-- each time
a very great opportunity
to work deeply with a living
composer and to do a good job.
>> David Plylar: I think that's
a wonderful attitude to have.
I mean, that's nice
that you keep that
as part of what you do.
This program that you put
together for us is remarkable
because, I mean, for a
number of reasons that I'm sure
we're going to hear
in the concert itself.
but we basically have three
sets of transcriptions for
string quartet. and first, we
could speak about the Debussy.
It's a transcription of
a piece that's originally for
Four-hand duet and
the Petite Suite.
and is this-- maybe you
could say something about it.
It's a wonderful piece.
I know in the forehand version,
but I haven't heard it in the
Quartet version, so...
>> Emmanuel Franois: Yeah,
it's actually a piece I love
for many, many years.
and of course I know the
Four-hands version.
and also I played it in
orchestra also, you know,
the orchestration by [].
I don't remember his name, but
and I really love this piece
and especially the orchestral
version because it's a full of
color and it's a delight.
and I really wanted to play
it as a string quartet.
so that's why I decided
to make a transcription--
>> David Plylar:
That's wonderful.
>> Emmanuel Franois:
Transcription of this piece.
>> David Plylar: Oh, that's
wonderful. I mean, have you--
have you done many
transcriptions like this before?
>> Emmanuel Franois: Personally
I did some transcriptions,
but not necessarily
for string quartet
because I teach also the viola.
so I made some transcriptions
for my students for two violas,
three, four violas,
this kind of stuff.
but not for string quartet,
except one piece I wrote
many years ago for--
It's a folk music piece.
I arranged for string quartet
because I'm from Auvergne,
like Anthony, Alban is
in the middle of France.
It's an area in the middle of
France and as a specialist in
Bourra, which is a kind of
dance and that's a piece.
>> David Plylar: Oh, wonderful.
You know, and one
of the things about
that set that-- I
don't know if this was--
did you do that before you
did the rest of the sets?
Because it's one
of the movements of the Debussy
is based on a song
of his Ftes galantes,
I think from an early,
early song of Debussy.
and it fits so well
with the rest of the
melody transcriptions
that are in the set.
so it seemed like a very
natural fit, kind of from that
perspective to then the minuet.
I think it's the minuet movement
that was based on that but...
>> Emmanuel Franois: Actually,
I think we-- it started--
we decided to choose
the pieces we love.
and I remember it was in a mere.
We were around the swimming pool
and we were talking
about our next projects
and we were talking
about these projects,
which was kind of
important for us.
and we were all talking and all
proposing some pieces.
and so we had a huge amount of
pieces and we had to select and
it was an interesting
discussion I remember.
>> Anthony Kondo: Because
the first point of this project
was that we realized that
Debussy, Faur Gabriel,
we love these composers
and they are--
they represent France also a lot
with this great period.
and they just wrote
one string quartet each.
so we feel a bit like--
we, like, there's more.
so that was our idea maybe
to bring more pieces from them
and that's why we chose
some melodies and some
piano pieces to make
it a bit more. Yeah.
>> David Plylar: so did you
commission the transcriptions?
Is that how that came about?
>> Anthony Kondo: Yes.
>> David Plylar:
That's wonderful.
and I think that the choice--
I think that the next set
after the Debussy
is the Poulenc set.
Right? and there's a number of
kind of famous songs in there,
but also some ones that
they're just beautiful.
They're really wonderful pieces
that mostly from, I mean, he had
such a long career in terms
of when he was writing those.
I think it was a very long
period that he was writing them.
but I think that these
particular ones are mostly from
parts of the Second World War
and into, I think, 1950.
I think it's the latest one.
but...
How did you feel about
how they turned out
for string quartet?
How did that-- does
it feel like a good--
>> Anthony Kondo: It's
very, very fun to play.
It's a lot-- there's a lot of
Cabaret also, for example,
with the Schumann de
L'Amour, which was written
for a very famous singer
of cabaret singer in France.
>> Emmanuel Franois:
She was also an actress.
>> Anthony Kondo: Yeah.
>> Emmanuel Franois:
Yvonne Patton.
>> David Plylar: That's
wonderful. Yeah, that's right.
The one-- Which song was it?
>> Anthony Kondo:
the Schumann de L'Amour.
>> David Plylar:
Okay. Right.
and that was for and that was
part of an incidental music,
right, for a
larger play I think.
and is that--
maybe that's not true.
>> Anthony Kondo: Probably
you know better than, so.
>> Emmanuel Franois: What's
interesting about Poulenc melody
is it's very free.
When you see the score,
you see that there
is many possibilities
for the musician and you
can do many, many things
and you feel very
free in this music.
and that's interesting because
you can be as imaginative
as possible.
>> David Plylar:
Yeah. and you know, it's--
I think there's a there's
a book by Pierre Bernard
that is about his, you know,
all the songs of Poulenc.
and he makes a wonderful
statement at the beginning
which is I'll butcher it
but I'll paraphrase it
to say that these--
his harmony may be
that of everybody,
but it's the way that he does it
is only it's his, you know,
it's him right away
when you're listening to it.
and I think that that
definitely comes through
as I got to know these songs
better just in that way.
so I'm really looking forward
to hearing the string quartet
versions because I'm a big fan
of transcription and I think
it's a wonderful way to
enhance the repertoire
like you're talking about.
>> Anthony Kondo: and apparently
he wrote a string quartet,
but he burned it.
>> David Plylar:
Oh, no.
>> Anthony Kondo:
so yes.
>> David Plylar: Composers
are their own worst enemies.
I think sometimes. That's,
yeah, that's awful
to hear. That's...
>> Anthony Kondo:
Too much exigence.
>> David Plylar:
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
One has to be. Let's--
Anyway, that's, I think.
You know, the last group that
you have in this collection
for that we're going to hear
tonight, Faur is kind of
considered to be
one of the great
masters of French songwriting.
and so how did you go about--
Was this the same sort of--
was at the same pool
situation where you came up
with the which songs to choose?
That's wonderful. I love that
you all knew all these songs
so well that you could
just talk about them.
>> Anthony Kondo: I mean, we
said we're going to be looking
for French melodies or pieces.
so we spent a few,
maybe a few days before,
each of us on
Spotify or whatever
just to listen
a lot amount of...
and then this one
is very special. I like it.
and then do you know this one?
and it's the talk and yeah.
>> David Plylar: That's
wonderful. and these,
I mean, they're
very-- it's very
interesting to listen
to them side to side
with the Poulenc because
they're very modern
in a kind of a way that
you don't expect from if,
you know, say his early piano
music or something like that.
It's not something that you
might expect to hear if you
don't know his vocal
writing and whatnot.
but in many ways,
these are kind of
quintessential romantic
or late 19th century.
>> Anthony Kondo: Faur.
That's what is very--
I like about this project
is that all these composers,
they really have a signature
and you cannot be wrong.
You cannot hesitate between
Poulenc, Faur or Debussy.
It's so clear.
They all have their universe.
>> David Plylar: Well,
we were talking earlier,
just before we started to--
before we got started in
this conversation,
you had mentioned that this
is part of a larger project
that is going to involve
other composers as well.
Can you say a bit about that?
Like, the other-- what
other French song.
>> Anthony Kondo: so it's a
composer and a jazzman pianist
called Baptiste Trotignon,
and I played one of his
pieces maybe six years ago,
and I really liked it because
it's very rhythmical, but also
with a very good sense of
the melody and the line.
so we asked him
if he was feeling
like, okay with the
idea of introducing
the composers of our
cycle of melodies.
and he thought this idea
was good.
so now we're just waiting for
what is going to come.
>> David Plylar: That's
wonderful. so you'll have...
you'll have the three composers
that we're presenting tonight,
but who are the
other other two more?
Is it Ravel and...
>> Emmanuel Franois: and Sativ.
>> David Plylar: and Sativ?
>> Emmanuel Franois: Okay. so
basically, we're going to play
five different composers,
and Baptiste Rossignol
is about to compose a piece
within five movements.
and each movement will be a
kind of homage to a composer.
>> David Plylar: That's
exciting, that will be a nice
and so this this
project is kind of--
it's coming in the midst
of a larger project
that you're working on, which
is the Mendelssohn Cycle, right?
so are you doing that before you
get to Volume two or are you?
>> Anthony Kondo: Volume
two is going to be released
on the 24th of February.
>> David Plylar: Oh, fantastic.
>> Emmanuel Franois: Very soon.
>> David Plylar: Wonderful.
That's very exciting. We're--
so the end of our program
we, of course I'm
very interested.
I'll be looking forward to
hearing that full recording that
has those kind of interpolated
works as well as the other
transcriptions. but our program
that we're going to be hearing
at the Library features
the final string quartet of
Mendelssohn. and we the Library
of Congress, has a lot of
Mendelssohn manuscripts and
letters and things like that in
its collection. We don't have a
string quartet, though,
unfortunately. We wish, but we
do have the octet,
the version that he finished
when he was 16
and it's one of the few--
he made some different.
>> Emmanuel Franois:
You have the manuscript?
>> David Plylar: We have
the manuscript, yeah.
and so he made some
changes to it later.
but so it's a rare case where
we have that early version of
what he was thinking.
so that's-- we take--
we're very happy to have that
and be able to
show that to people.
but in any case, we're talking
the opposite end of his life.
so this is the-- I think
actually finished it just
a few months before
he passed away.
and it's a very intense work.
and I'm wondering if you could
just say, is this a piece that
you've lived with for a long
time or is this relatively new
to you? How much
have you played this work
or how has it been a
part of what you've done?
>> Emmanuel Franois: Yeah,
I think we used to play
many years ago and
then we started again
to play it for the
Mendelssohn Cycle
and it felt good to be back
to this piece years ago
because when we came
back to this piece,
we had already performed
the other string quartets,
so it felt like
the end of a cycle.
and, and we were fed with all
this music and all these
string quartets by Mendelssohn.
and we felt that we were at the
end of the road in a way, and
that we could really understand
Mendelssohn language and...
Yeah.
>> Anthony Kondo: and you
can really also feel that
this one is different
from the other one.
It has really this,
like you said,
this violence and
this feeling of end
that you don't have
usually in Mendelssohn music.
>> David Plylar: Yeah.
and I wonder if I mean,
I mean everybody says this, but
just the effect of his sister's
death is probably one of the
things that really
spurred him to write it.
I mean, not that he needed
anything to encourage him to
write because he was so
prolific, but I think that
there's something raw about it,
something that's really...
Very powerful piece. but
all of his quartets, I think,
are wonderful. so I'm so pleased
that you're doing them and
having those come out so
soon. That's wonderful.
and the first volume
came out in 2020.
Is that right? Or just recently?
>> Emmanuel Franois:
A few months ago.
>> David Plylar: A few months
ago? Yes, that's right.
>> Anthony Kondo:
Last October.
>> David Plylar:
and the one, the previous.
You had a Mortaz quintet cycle.
A group of quintets.
Viola quintets, right?
>> Anthony Kondo: Yeah.
>> David Plylar: Wonderful.
and what kinds of things do
you imagine that you might be
doing after this kind of
French song inspired CD?
Do you imagine that recording?
I don't know if people even
released the CDs.
>> Emmanuel Franois: We have
a lot of discussions about this,
and it's not settled yet.
>> David Plylar:
That's alright. Okay.
>> Anthony Kondo: Maybe it
finished the Mozart cycle of.
>> Emmanuel Franois: This might
be also Dvork piano quintets.
The two quintets.
We don't know yet.
>> Anthony Kondo: We discovered
the first Dvork quintet
because the second one
is always played.
and we didn't even knew
there was a first quintet.
and it's very, very good too.
>> David Plylar:
Oh, wonderful. Oh, that's great.
so, I mean, it's great that
you're bringing music that is
maybe understood in a different
context or not as well known
in this sort of way forward.
In addition to putting forward
these kind of, these great works
that, I mean, I don't think
that Mendelssohn always had the
highest reputation as he should
have had with his quartets until
maybe, I guess the last 50
years or so he's gotten done
well. but that's wonderful.
>> Anthony Kondo: Because
people say it's a bit too talky
and not depth enough, but I
think it's just a matter about
how you you read his music
and you understand it.
and also there's a lot
of technical challenge in,
for example, the Opus 40,
they are very challenging.
so maybe also it's part of--
>> Emmanuel Franois: 44.
>> Anthony Kondo:
44. Yeah. sorry.
>> David Plylar:
I mean, it seems like...
since he was able to play
himself, there would be at least
be given some deference
to say that he knew
what he was doing pretty well.
and but in any case,
that's wonderful.
Is there anything else that
you'd like to say
about the program, about
what's coming up for you?
>> Anthony Kondo: Maybe just a
few words about the instruments.
>> David Plylar:
Oh, absolutely.
>> Anthony Kondo: Which is
one of the reasons which makes
this place also so special.
Because, I mean,
I play the cello, which is the
Stradivarius from 1697
called the Castleberger.
>> David Plylar:
Castleberger. Yeah.
Yeah. and I think I never
felt this kind of power and
depth in some of the lowest
notes like the E and the E-flat
are just mind blowing.
I was just like, what is going.
>> David Plylar:
That's wonderful.
and are you enjoying the viola?
>> Emmanuel Franois: Yeah,
the viola is good as well.
but it's very Stradivarius in a
way that it was a very, very,
of course, good
maker for violins
and also for cellos, is
less famous for violas.
but this viola has very
interesting sound, especially on
the high register.
so the the A
string is very good.
Yeah, the C string is not that
good, but it's still good,
>> David Plylar:
Right. It's okay.
The quality is Stradivarius.
You know, I thank you
for bringing that up
because I probably
would have lost my job
after if I had neglected to
say something about those.
I do appreciate that.
but thank you so much for
speaking with me today.
We're looking forward
to the concert that,
you'll be seeing
this talk later.
but their concert is on
February 8 in the Great Hall.
and so thanks again.
>> Emmanuel Franois: Thank you.
>> Anthony Kondo: Thank you.