Neikrug: Through Roses

Chronique

Composer and pianist Marc Neikrug wrote Through Roses in 1979 and 1980. The piece could technically be classified as a melodrama, a work in which spoken word, usually poetry, is accompanied by music, but Through Roses transcends that definition and defies easy categorization. It might also be considered music theater, or a monodrama, since the narrator acts as well as speaks, but the piece is essentially sui generis. It has been translated into 11 languages, recorded three times, received over 500 performances, was made into a feature film and was the subject of a documentary, a remarkable record for any piece of contemporary music. Given the work's emotional potency, though, its astonishing performance history is easy to understand. The text, which Neikrug wrote himself, consists of the scattered, nightmarish recollections of a violinist, a survivor of Auschwitz, and culminates in the memory of a devastating event in the camp that has wracked his life ever since. It's scored for a mixed ensemble of eight players, with the first violin part especially prominent. Neikrug's score skillfully weaves the classical music that would have been part of the narrator's repertoire into a hallucinatory, colorful modernist fabric that's charged with dramatic urgency. The tone, though, is never exaggeratedly histrionic; its understated quality makes its impact all the more devastating. This is a piece that's not for the weak of heart; of the musical works that have been created in response to the Holocaust, Through Roses is among the most wrenchingly and unaffectedly powerful and honest. The narrator's role is crucial in establishing the tone, and actor John Rubenstein does a superbly convincing job of leading the listener through the character's seemingly disjointed ramblings until they pull together with crystalline clarity at the work's climax. The composer leads the chamber ensemble in a reading that captures the essence of the narrator's chaotic thoughts as well as the chaos of life in Auschwitz. Neikrug has been Pinchas Zukerman's accompanist for most of the violinist's career, and Zukerman plays the solo part with sweetness and power. The sound is clean and atmospheric, but the recording stops too abruptly after the final notes, before the hushed mood has had adequate chance to settle. Highly recommended.
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