A new chamber band debuted in Sydney on Friday, June 11, joining a packed collection of ensembles. The Ensemble Forelle, quintet with piano, are the minnows of the current, distinguishing themselves by paying homage to Austrian chamber music. It was the initiative of violinist James Armstrong who conceived the idea after a three-week immersion tour of Vienna and Salzburg in early 2020 as the winner of the first Austrian scholarship awarded by the youth orchestras of Sydney and the Austrian National Tourist Board in 2019 at the time. 19 years old.

Organized by the Austrian National Tourist Board at the Mosman Art Gallery, the opening concert featured the Forelle Ensemble composed of Armstrong, violist Aisha Goodman, cellist Angela Shin, double bassist Lilly Bennett and by pianist Estelle Shircore Barker in an entirely Schubert formation.

The Forelle Ensemble at its first concert with Kathrina Denk and Astrid Gruchmann-Licht, Marketing Manager and Director of the Austrian National Tourist Board, Australia. Photograph © ANTO / Andy Baker

While in Austria, Armstrong attended rehearsals with the Vienna Philharmonic and other major orchestras, a masterclass at the Musikverein and concerts by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra conducted by Riccardo Muti, the Philharmonic Orchestra of Vienna conducted by Daniel Barenboim, the ORF Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra of the Theater an der Wien and Orchestra of the Camerata Salzburg. On the entertainment side, there was the legendary Vienna Philharmonic Ball, tours of the two cities and their musical institutions.

Armstrong felt drawn to the music of Franz Schubert, and thus his ensemble is dedicated to the music of the short-lived composer who wrote the Piano Quintet in A major D. 667 in 1819, aged 22 – no much older than Armstrong as he makes up this set. The quintet’s nickname ‘Forellenquintett’ (Trout Quintet) derives from its fourth movement, which describes a trout that sparkles and glides through the ribbons of water in a stream. The fourth movement itself is based on the legendary lied, Die Forelle (Trout), Op. 32, D550 , composed at the beginning of 1817 for solo voice and piano, which could have completed the introduction of the piece.

Armstrong began studying the violin at the age of 11 and, alongside an outstanding musical career at school, has been a member of SYO since 2014, ironically joining the Symphonic Wind Orchestra as a flautist. He quickly became Associate Principal Violin of the SYO Philharmonic in 2015 and progressed to the SYO Flagship Orchestra in 2016 where he is currently Principal Second Violin. He has already performed as a soloist and ensemble musician with several groups. He is under the tutelage of Janet Davies at the Sydney Conservatory of Music and participates in the Young Mentorship Program of the Australian Brandenburg Orchestra.

Introducing the ensemble, Astrid Gruchmann-Licht, Australia / New Zealand branch manager of the Austrian National Tourism Board, joked that Austria has perhaps more dead composers per square mile than any other. country, but that its musical tradition is very much alive. She described the tradition of Schubertiaden in early 19th-century Vienna, on which this meeting was based – an informal event, held in private homes, usually sponsored by patrons of Schubert’s music. This year celebrates the bicentenary of the first document Schubertiade, a concept that now ignites intimate concerts as well as festivals around the world.

Faithful to this convivial tradition, the atmosphere was relaxed when the ensemble opened its debut with the first movement, Allegro moderato from Schubert’s Violin Sonata in A major (Grand Duo) D 574, sweet and lyrical, followed by the Trio in B flat major, D 471, a nuanced interpretation of this incomplete work, written especially for an intimate setting. They paid tribute to contemporary Australian composer and arranger Emma Greenhill with her arrangement of the sublime Ave Maria D 839 Op. 52 n ° 6. These cameos culminated in the centerpiece of the evening Schubertiade – an extremely refined performance by the ‘Trout’ Quintet itself.

It was a good start for this exuberant and talented young ensemble. Armstrong emphasized the collegial nature of the ensemble, studying at the Sydney Conservatory of Music and performing together in the Australian Youth Orchestra and SYO. He artfully identified a niche in the landscape, which is currently heavily focused on exhibitors of early music and the early classical music repertoire.

Armstrong also identified the opportunity for regional tours, as after this launch the ensemble will hit the road, giving private and public concerts, traveling through Albury State, Bowral and Canberra to Hunter Valley and Young. This will give them invaluable performance experience and build an audience base.

Certainly the Forelle Quintet takes off with the good wishes of its supporters. Their audience this evening included Richard Bonynge and Jan Bowen, the former president of SYO, who initiated this collaboration with the Austrian National Tourist Board. There was a sense of excitement as to how its members will mature and tackle Schubert’s more sophisticated and challenging chamber works as they grow. The repertoire is certainly plentiful and ripe for their exploration – even as I write these lines, Schubert’s ‘Trout’ Quintet is playing on ABC Classic 100 – The Music You Can’t Live Without.