Wolfgang Mozart (1756-91) completed his first triowhen he was 20 years old, then didn’t return to the form for a decade, but whenhe did he created far more sophisticated works than his initial effort. Amongthe latter group, arguably the best is the Trio in E Major, K. 542. It’s reallymuch like a rudimentary piano concertothe normally leading piano partthoroughly enfolded into the stringsstriking a harmonious balance betweenrigor of design and emotional appeal.
The Trio in G Minor, Op. 110 of 1851 was the thirdand last such work composed by Robert Schumann (1810-56). Though his first triois generally regarded as his best, the intimate chamber music genre alwaysallowed Schumann to indulge his preference for intricate inner-workings andadventurous harmonies. Not surprisingly, the piano is first among equals, withthe strings either following or standing in opposition as a united front. Withhindsight, some point to the G Minor Trio as eliciting signs of Schumann’smental decline; nevertheless, whatever it may lack in cohesiveness it makes upfor in its impassioned pleas.
“During the summer (of 1888), Jean composed the lastof his big trios, the Piano Trio in C Major, JS 208 (‘Lovisa’),” writes AndrewBarnett of Jean Sibelius (1865-1957). Though Sibelius’ works are very much anacquired taste, owing to their often severe nature, Barnett correctly observesthat the C Major Trio is on many chamber music programs due to “its sparklingthematic invention and its manageable proportions.”
The Prometheus Trio wraps up their concert with asomewhat early work of Armenian-American composer Alan Hovhaness (1911-2000):the Trio No. 1, Op. 3 (1935). Hovhaness’ works are numerous; indeed he was oneof the most prolific 20th-century composers, with more than 60 symphonies andnumerous choral works, ballets, operas and all manner of chamber music to hisname. His style changed over time as he discovered new methods and inspiration.As music critic Richard Buell onceobserved: “Although (Hovhaness) has been stereotyped as a self-consciouslyArmenian composer, his output assimilates the music of many cultures;” andHovhaness’ American nationality is perhaps best reflected in the way his music“turns its materials into a kind of exoticism. The atmosphere is hushed,reverential, mystical, nostalgic.”
The PrometheusTrio performs these trios Dec. 7-8 at Helen Bader Hall of the WisconsinConservatory of Music.
