Tune after wonderful Schubert tune

The New Zealand String Quartet. Photo / Supplied.

Next Thursday Chamber Music New Zealand celebrates its 60th anniversary with Schubertiade, consisting of a trio, a quartet and a quintet by the Austrian composer, played by the New Zealand String Quartet with pianist Michael Houstoun and bass player Michael Steer.

The Schubertiade is an Austrian tradition, dating back almost 200 years. "It seems to have been what they did back in that time," says violinist Helene Pohl, adding that the composer's Notturno, in which she is joined by cellist Rolf Gjelsten and Houstoun, is "the most gorgeous opening I could imagine. It's a wonderfully gentle invitation to an evening of music making".

Following this, the great G major Quartet, dating from Schubert's last years, is more challenging. It might show the influence of Beethoven but, she says, "You never get the sense of being manipulated as you do with Beethoven. There's such a naturalness to it.

"The fullness of life is there. Poor Schubert only heard its first movement, and even then he was playing in it. He put all his vital forces, all the dark and light of his life into this music."

Yet despite the drama of it all, there is an intensely human quality to the work. "Schubert seems to encompass the whole of one's humanity in a forgiving sort of way," as Pohl puts it.

When I point out that Schubert, as usual, cannot resist coming up with tune after wonderful tune, she defines his lyrical gifts as "hard-wired" in him.

"Even when he has us doing tremolo, which means playing the shortest possible notes on our instruments, somehow the melody still comes through."

After interval, Schubert's celebrated Trout Quintet brings in Houstoun and the double bass of Michael Steer, with the sole violin duties being taken by NZSQ colleague Douglas Beilman. "I see them coming out of rehearsals with such big smiles," Pohl laughs. "They're having such fun, those guys. But then there's such a joy in communal music making and we love getting together with the two Michaels."

Pohl and the Quartet have a particularly close bond with Michael Houstoun. "We delight in exploring music together," she explains. "We're always asking each other what's this marking here, or what works better at a certain point. Michael will talk about pedaling options and we think about how that relates to what we do in the strings. We feel a great kinship."

But then the presence of a piano adds something very special to the music. "Whenever you play with piano it's like you're hopping on the surfboard and the piano's the ocean. The piano creates so much of the momentum of the music, we're released to play more melodically and that's a great joy."

Possibly inspired by her own recent involvement with a klezmer band and playing some rock music after the NZSQ's last American tour, Pohl offers a daring, potential twist to Schubertian expectations.

"It would be interesting if you had a drummer, trained as sensitively as we were, to help us interpret a piece by Schubert."

She assures me, though, that Schubert will be played straight when the NZSQ record the Quartet in Toronto this year. The group has a number of CDs due for release soon, including collections of works by Asian and New Zealand composers.

"It's a wonderful way to push yourself to a new level. There's never a wheel-spinning moment, never a Groundhog Day," Pohl laughs. "There is that feeling that this CD is going to be around when we're gone, and how can we say something about this music that is going to speak to people that will never see us play."

Performance:

What: Schubertiade, with the NZ String Quartet, pianist Michael Houstoun and bass player Michael Steer

Where and when: Auckland Town Hall, Thursday at 8pm