The Opus 76 String Quartet staged a concert of string showpieces Saturday, Nov. 8 at the Midwest Trust Center at Johnson County Community College’s Yardley Hall. Joined by violinist Alexander Markov, the chamber group presented works by Haydn, Bach, Niccolò Paganini and others.
Based in Kansas City, the quartet was established in 2017, and since then has taken the city by storm with successful concerts and recordings, including the complete set of string quartets by Beethoven. The quartet is comprised of violinists Keith Stanfield and Waka Kim, violist Ashley Stanfield and cellist Ho Anthony Ahn.
The group opened the concert with the finale from Franz Joseph Haydn’s famous “Joke Quartet,” Op. 33, No. 2. From the outset, the performers displayed a warm and well blended sound. Melodies were buoyant and the articulations were light and crisp. First violinist Keith Stanfield supplied several ornaments to the melodic line, and the players took their time at the pauses in the music.
The work receives its name from the surprise ending, where the music seems to be over but really isn’t. Stanfield brought his bow down at the false ending, resulting in the audience’s applause. The joke was on the audience, of course, since there was one more abbreviated phrase—all had a good laugh.
The remainder of the concert featured Markov performing as a soloist along with the string quartet. Markov received an impressive Avery Fisher Career Grant in 1987 and won a Gold Medal at the Paganini International Violin Competition in Genoa in 1982. Since then, he includes among his specialties the music of the 19th-century virtuoso composer and violinist Paganini and performed with major orchestras like the Philadelphia Orchestra, BBC Philharmonic, Montreal Symphony and others. From the outset Markov showed himself to be a showman, not only with his instrument, but with his attire. He wore a grey and black jacket liberally laced with sequins.
The performers played the first and third movements of Bach’s Violin Concerto in E Major, omitting the slow second movement. The composition works well for string quartet, since the original orchestral setting is scored simply for strings and continuo keyboard. Markov displayed technical proficiency, playing the rapid passages ably, though not without an occasional slip in intonation and tone. The quartet members likewise played impressively, since their parts are nearly as difficult.
Markov returned to the stage, this time in a dark blue sequined jacket, to play an arrangement of Tomaso Antonio Vitali’s Chaconne in G Minor. The arrangement for violin and string quartet was made by Albert Markov, the soloist’s father and first violin teacher.
The work and the performance were simply beautiful. The slower tempo resulted in a very rich tone on the part of the soloist. The music alternated between slow lyrical and rapid ornamented passages, and both were expertly delivered. The quartet also played its role wonderfully, executing pizzicato (plucked) strings with sensitivity, precision and always together.
The lush and sweet Cantabile in D Major by Paganini, originally composed for violin and piano, was performed in a luxurious arrangement. Markov seemed to save his most opulent tone of the program for this work.
Paganini’s 24 Caprices for Solo Violin are renowned for their death-defying tempos, musical brilliance and technical challenges. Markov has recorded all 24 works for both audio and DVD recordings. He played Caprice No. 16 in G Minor with such rapid finger work and bowings that it seemed the temperature must certainly have risen ten degrees in Yardley Hall. Not only was it played with technical brilliance, but with striking musicality.
The concert ended with Paganini’s Sonata in E Minor, Op. 3, No. 4. Markov proudly told the audience that this was an arrangement by his father and was receiving its first performance. Violist Ashley Stanfield stood out for her warm tone near the outset. The work was playful and alternated between a slow opening and a faster central section. After strong applause from the audience, Markov and Opus 76 repeated part of the work as an encore.
For more information on offerings at the Midwest Trust Center, visit www.jccc.edu/midwest-trust-center/
Reviewed on Saturday, November 8, 2025.
