Chamber music: Wagner and Enescu

Richard Wagner’s music dramas take centre stage this season, but his music for small ensembles is equally captivating. Siegfried Idyll, featuring birdsong and a lullaby, was a tender birthday gift to his wife Cosima, free from the weight of his grand operas, though its themes later appeared in Der Ring. George Enescu’s lushly harmonic Octet showcases the rarely used combination of eight strings, blending the power of a larger ensemble with the in...