A modestly-sized audience attended this poorly publicised concert, just hours before the New Zealand String Quartet flew out for its regular summertime touring in Europe and the United States.
Unfortunately, the performance needed more polish if one was to overlook the conservatism of the programming.
Nevertheless, one's heart went out to the hi-energy ensemble, with new second violinist Monique Lapins, contending with belligerent air conditioning that almost became a fifth and unwelcome member of the group.
Perhaps it was this struggle that compromised delicate nuancing in two Rachmaninov pieces, especially in the scherzo's pianissimos and triple pianos.
Leader Helene Pohl likened the first half of the concert to moving from one bon bon to another. If so, Mendelssohn's D major Quartet should have been a little sweeter; the NZSQ's signature vivacity didn't atone for the ruptured sheen of the opening Allegro or Pohl's wavering intonation in the Minuet.
