PROGRAMS
IMPRESSIONIST INFLUENCES
Despite disliking the label of “Impressionism,” Claude Debussy’s unique palette of colors and orchestration paved the way for countless composers who would follow. His two late sonatas for piano and stringed instruments are the culmination of the master’s output, returning to a more melodic style he embraced in his earlier years. Bridge’s quaint miniatures capture the influence of Debussy while looking forward to the future, while Piazzolla, after studying with Nadia Boulanger, incorporated the worlds of jazz and modern classicism into his revolutionary Nuevo tango.
Claude Debussy - Cello Sonata
Frank Bridge - Miniatures for Piano Trio
Claude Debussy - Violin Sonata
Astor Piazzolla - Four Seasons of Buenos Aires
MODERN ANGLES
Higdon and Auerbach eschew the traditional writing for the piano trio, contrasting vague melodic lines and quasi-impressionist textures with percussive effects and rhythmic interplay. The Ravel duo for violin and cello, written from 1920 to 1922, is the composer at perhaps his most experimental, ignoring harmony to create the ideal melodic line. His earlier Piano Trio uses a more familiar language, yet still pushes boundaries with its liberal use of natural harmonics, pizzicato, trills, and mixed meter.
Jennifer Higdon - Piano Trio
Lera Auerbach - Trio No. 1, Op. 28
Maurice Ravel - Duo for Violin and Cello, M. 73
Maurice Ravel - Piano Trio
FROM DARKNESS TO LIGHT
Working backwards through time, the program opens with Poulenc’s sinister and tragic Violin Sonata paying homage to his dear friend Federico Lorca who was murdered at the hands of fascists. Shostakovich’s cello sonata captures a complicated crossroads in his life, when he briefly fell in love with another woman, separating from his wife, although he would repair his marriage shortly after. Finally, Beethoven’s archduke trio highlights one of the monumental geniuses at the peak of his powers. From the opening bars, the trio promises an epic journey that soars, sings, and dances through to its light-hearted and satisfying finale.
Francis Poulenc - Violin Sonata
Dmitri Shostakovich - Cello Sonata in D Minor, Op. 40
Ludwig van Beethoven - Piano Trio in B-Flat Major, Op. 97 “Archduke Trio” *
* Mendelssohn C Minor Trio may be substituted for Beethoven
FOLK FANTASY
Folk music enjoyed somewhat of a Renaissance in the late 19th century as composers integrated mythical stories and peasant songs into their works as a counterweight to the grander visions of Verdi and Wagner. Rhythmic dances pervade these three works, while the Kodály and Dvořák are rooted in tragedy in contrast to the more lively and carefree Cassadó trio.
Zoltán Kodály - Duo for Violin and Cello, Op. 7
Gaspar Cassadó - Piano Trio in C Major
Antonin Dvořák - Piano Trio No. 3 in F Minor, Op. 65 *
* Smetana Trio in G Minor may be substituted for Dvořák
WORLD OF JAZZ
The Verve Trio presents a dynamic and offbeat program with deep ties to American Jazz. Both Nikolai Kapustin and David Baker toured as jazz musicians before settling down to write and publish their “classical” compositions. Divertissement and Roots II are fiendishly difficult pieces requiring poise and aplomb in performance. Schoenfield’s raucous and tuneful Cafe Music strives to recreate the mix of jazz, Broadway, and gypsy music that Schoenfield heard one fateful night at a cocktail bar in 1985.
Nikolai Kapustin - Divertissement for Piano Trio, Op. 126
David Baker - Roots II for Piano trio
Paul Schoenfield - Café Music
EUROPEAN DYNASTIES
The pioneering Boulanger sisters were not prolific composers, but their published pieces reflect their deep family roots in music and unique genius. Across the Channel, a young Rebecca Clarke would grow up studying in London, later moving to the United States where she would craft her most well-known pieces. This includes her Piano Trio, a piece that draws from international influences yet remains English at its core. The Arno Babajanian Trio rounds out this quartet of early 20th century works, written in a musical language developed on the eastern side of the continent, highlighting sentimental melodies and fiery dances from his homeland of Armenia.
Lili Boulanger - Nocturne and Cortège (violin and piano)
Nadia Boulanger - 3 pieces for cello and piano
Rebecca Clarke - Piano Trio
Arno Babajanian - Piano Trio*
* Arensky Piano Trio No. 1, Op. 32 may be substituted for Babajanian