KARACHI: There’s something magical about wind instruments. They remind one of Rumi’s well-known poem in which he narrates the journey of the reed flute… the ney. Its inner sadness, the pangs of separation from its roots, speaks of the realisation of the soul’s rebirth. On Saturday evening the ‘only piano windtet’ of its kind, Ensemble 4.1, brought to Pakistan by the Goethe Institut, entertained and enriched the audience at the Arts Council by giving a marvellous performance.

Their rendition of Beethoven and Walter Gieseking’s classical compositions, especially in the case of the latter because he’s the lesser heard composer of the two, brimmed with lyrical mellifluousness and rhythmic verve.

The five musicians — Thomas Hoppe (piano), Jorg Schneider (oboe), Alexander Glucksmann (clarinet), Paul-Gregor Straka (bassoon) and Sebastian Posch (horn) — appeared on stage after two brief speeches made by Arts Council president Ahmed Shah and German Consul General in Karachi Dr Rudiger Lotz. The former talked about future collaboration between the council and the German mission, and the latter about the band.

They kicked off the concert a couple of pieces by Beethoven. The first one, given the positively receptive nature of the crowd which cheered the five men wholeheartedly, was a lively composition which nicely set the tone for the evening. It was followed by a pensive number with long melancholic notes. While the pianist was absolutely brilliant throughout the gig, in this particular set, the wind instruments, perhaps due to the storytelling style of the great composer, were particularly impressive, pulling at the heart strings of the discerning audience.

After that, Glucksmann addressed the audience. He said, “Really happy to be in Karachi. This is our second time and kind of a birthday present for us because in May 2013 we came here and held our very first concert as an ensemble. After that we had so much fun. We decided to stay together and now after 149 concerts all over the world we come back here. Walter Gieseking was a famous pianist in the 1950s. He was famous for his interpretation of Debussy and Ravel. He was a composer, too, and had about 10 or 15 pieces. The one you’re going to listen to is we think is his greatest work. It combines everything what he played on the piano. It’s like film music.”

Indeed, it was like that. There were three episodes that the group played. The first had loud, aggressive notes which wonderfully segued into a gentler movement; the second was a sluggish, wailing tune with a sense of loss; and the third a pacy composition with sprightly, jumpy notes. It was such a great musical experience!

Published in Dawn, October 23th, 2023