City Recital Hall, Sydney
November 14, 2018

Mendelssohn’s Second String Quintet wasn’t published until after his death the composer having qualms about the finale. The fierce energy with which the Omega Ensemble’s string quintet dispatched the last bars in the performance last night, however, may have ameliorated some of Mendelssohn’s concern. This was a vibrant performance perfectly suited to the concert’s title, Momentum.

Violinist Anna Da Silva Chen led the quintet – Mendelssohn wrote for Mozart/Beethoven’s two-viola line-up – consisting of violinist Airena Nakamura, violists Amanda Verner and Neil Thompson, and cellist Howard Penny, guesting courtesy of the Australian National Academy of Music. Chen’s violin gleamed at the upper end of the spectrum, over the earthier motoring of the ensemble in the first movement. The quintet maintained momentum into the Andante scherzando, though this was a little on the heavy side, while Penny’s ascending figures propelled the Adagio e lento forward from the cello before the movement’s more lyrical textures took over. Chen led a thrumming finale with power and verve.

Anna Da Silva Chen, Airena Nakamura, Neil Thompson, Paul Stender and Howard Penny in Omega Ensemble’s Momentum. Photo © David Vagg

While there was plenty...