The last week of our annual sojourn in Santa Fe has arrived: rushing around, seeing friends, watching movies, visiting museums, attending concerts. The chamber music program, see below, was a highlight of our time here.

The Ligeti Trio, apparently a real challenge for musicians, was played very beautifully. Yet at the interval, I overheard people expressing doubts about both the composer and the composition. Something to do, no doubt, with unresolved dissonance and asymmetric rhythms. For me these tensions were fully, even gloriously, satisfied in the last movement. The ethereal interplay between horn and violin had me literally on the edge of my seat, leaning forward.

The Mendelssohn was also beautifully played, but while perhaps a perfect choice for a mid-summer matinee performance, it seemed less profound than the Ligeti.

HAYDN Piano Trio in D Major, Hob. XV:16 Jennifer Frautschi, violin Wilhelmina Smith, cello Victor Santiago Asuncion, piano

LIGETI Trio for Horn, Violin & Piano, “Hommage à Brahms” Jennifer Frautschi, violin Eric Ruske, horn Allesio Bax, piano

MENDELSSOHN String Quintet No. 2 in B-flat Major, Op. 87 William Preucil, violin Jennifer Frautschi, violin Brett Dean, viola Hsin-Yun Huang, viola Mark Kosower, cello