Published: October 27, 2025
The highly anticipated performance on October 17th of the Faculty Concert Series from renowned pianist Laura Kargul and the Portland String Quartet enthralled audiences with thrilling crescendos that were elegantly placated by graceful harmonies. The sold-out performance filled the Performance Hall at the Crewe Center for the Arts with vivacious renditions of Ludwig Van Beethoven’s Serenade in D major for String Trio, Op. 8, and Johannes Brahms’s Quartet for Piano and Strings in C Minor, Op. 60.
The audience felt enraptured not only by the masterful skill of the soloists but also by the unrelenting intensity of their shared passion for music. The pieces by Beethoven showcased the strings with Callie Brennan on violin, Brianna Fischler on viola, and Kelly Knox on cello. Afterwards, Kargul set the stage by offering a portrait of a young Brahms engulfed by his love for Clara Schumann, the wife of his mentor and famed composer Robert Schumann, and being driven to express his overwhelming passion through bold cascading melodies. His pieces musically encoded the conflict between feeling uncontrollable and all-consuming passion yet being relegated to expressing this passion in measured ways. Each note was delicately and precisely put into place, but the notes were not so delicate. The performers remained in tune with Brahms’s melodrama as each movement beckoned waves of emotion that billowed over the audience. Multiple love stories were at play, from Brahms’s smoldering love for his mentor’s wife to the performers’ undeniable love of music as they passionately swayed with each chord. No emotion was spared as the piece scaled the peaks and valleys of the human condition, and the vibrato of the strings serenaded the audience. Their outstanding performance will continue to harmonize with the hearts of their audience long after the last note from Laura Kargul and the Portland String Quartet was played.
The performance ended in a resounding standing ovation from an impressed audience. The performance reminded us of the powerful ability of love and music to express mysteries of life. Laura Kargul and the Portland String Quartet were heartened by the audience’s excited response and appeared eager to grace the stage again at the Crewe Center for the Arts in the future.
