String Quartet Electrifies Audience

Presented by the Headwaters Council for the
Performing Arts
Vilas County News Review
By Barbara W. Wilkinson

Bravo! to the Headwaters Council for the Performing Arts for sponsoring the electrifying string ensemble “Stringfever” at the Northland Pines High School Auditorium on Wednesday, October 7.  This “little bit” classical, “little bit” rock ‘n roll quartet presented a riveting and wildly entertaining evening full of refinement with a wacky twist of humor that included a “little bit” of every musical style from Samuel Barber to Albinoni.  Consisting of a five and a six stringed violin, a viola and a cello--all violectras--these creative classically trained musicians mesmerized the audience with their melodic variations, their unusual instruments, and their antics and hilarious facial and body language.  The ensemble included three English-bred brothers and a cousin, all Broadbent’s, who were gifted in string performance.

Violectra stringed instruments, which are made of wood and consist only of the frame, neck, fingerboard and bow, are custom-made and painted in bright colors to compliment the personality of the musician playing them.  Being electric, these instruments can amplify sound or mute it as the arrangement requires, and the musicians easily varied that amplification  of their repertoire to enrapture the audience.  Opening their presentation with Vivaldi’s “Summer” from Four Seasons, the ensemble invigorated the listeners with its lively rendition, complete with acrobatics with the bow.  The percussion section consisted of cellist Neal whose mouth and fingers could humorously produce sounds that captured the beat and mood of the selection.  As a result, the four strings sounded like a whole orchestra whether the tone was soft and ethereal or loud and brassy.

Although the music was first rate, the charisma of the entertainers was so appealing that together they created an unforgettable experience.  There was little doubt that they were having as much fun as their listeners.  The performance was moving and innovative, and classically honed to fashion pleasure with style. 

Highlights of the evening included a powerful interpretation of The Charles Daniels Band’s 1970’s classic The Devil Went Down to Georgia, led by violinist Giles who outmatched the devil with his rousing performance and Grigoras Dinicu’s traditional Gypsy tune The Lark in a non-traditional version with high-pitched trills and harmonics that imitated birdsong.  In Lark, the musicians’ facial and body language, along with the switching of instruments and the cello played as a guitar were pure entertainment to the audience.   Additionally, there were several compilation medleys—James Bond theme songs, movies, TV, and a rousing finale of the History of Music (in Five Minutes), from Beethoven’s 5th Symphony and Ode to Joy and Gershwin’s Summertime, to Abba’s Money, Money, Money.  But the piece de resistance was the Stringfever rendition of Ravel’s Bolero.  Requesting two assistants from the audience who were given mini parts, the troupe descended on cellist Neal and began playing Ravel’s masterpiece in four different parts on the same instrument.

Overwhelmed by the uniqueness of the piece, the audience gave the troupe a standing ovation two songs before the final selection was performed.  It was not about to let the instrumentalists leave the stage.  The encore was a final tribute to the British “former colony”, the United States of America, and consisted of America, Yankee Doodle, Dixie, and The Star Spangled Banner; reluctantly, the audience finally understood that the concert was over.  It was a spectacular event, full of entertainment.  Thanks to the HCPA for an outstanding selection.  Stringfever cannot come back soon enough.