LAUREL ANN MAURER, Flute, Dumke Recital Hall, David Gardner Hall, Aug. 1
Since Laurel Ann Maurer moved to Vermont several years ago, it’s a rare treat whenever she returns to Utah for a concert.
She was in Salt Lake City this week, and Thursday Maurer played an imaginative program in Dumke Recital Hall that paired baroque music with jazz – a combination that works surprisingly well, especially when played by a talented group of musicians.
The first half of the concert focused on the baroque composers Georg Philipp Telemann and J.S. Bach, as well as one of Bach’s sons, C.P.E. Bach.
Joined by local musicians Pamela Jones on harpsichord and Richard Jones on viola da gamba (a young man with a lot of talent) Maurer opened with Telemann’s Sonata in F minor. She and her musical partners infused the slow movements with wonderfully nuanced lyricism while bringing dance like vibrancy to the Allegro and Vivace movements.
C.P.E. Bach’s Hamburg Sonata in G major followed. A prominent figure in the transitional period between the baroque and classical eras, Bach’s music clearly embodies the principles of the emergent classical style. His works are refined and elegant, and the trio of musicians underscored that with their polished account.
Rounding out the first half was J.S. Bach’s Trio Sonata in G major, BWV 1039, played by just Maurer and Pamela Jones. They brought remarkable clarity and precision to their account. There was depth and subtlety in their playing and a wonderful sense of lyricism.
The second half was devoted to Claude Bolling’s Suite for Flute and Jazz Piano Trio. Written for the late flute virtuoso Jean-Pierre Rampal, the suite is a clever and creative blending of classically inspired melodies and jazz harmonies and rhythms.
Maurer and Pamela Jones (on piano) were joined by bass player Denson Angula. The three gave a fabulous account that captured the improvisatory character of the music. It was quite a tour de force performance in which they deftly brought out the wit and sophistication of each of the suite’s seven sections.
