GÁL; SHOSTAKOVICH Piano Trios
View record and artist detailsRecord and Artist Details
Composer or Director: Hans Gál, Dmitri Shostakovich
Genre:
Chamber
Label: Avie
Magazine Review Date: AW18
Media Format: CD or Download
Media Runtime: 63
Mastering:
DDD
Catalogue Number: AV2390
Tracks:
Composition | Artist Credit |
---|---|
Piano Trio |
Hans Gál, Composer
Briggs Piano Trio Hans Gál, Composer |
Variations on a Viennese ‘Heurigen’ Melody |
Hans Gál, Composer
Briggs Piano Trio Hans Gál, Composer |
Piano Trio No. 2 |
Dmitri Shostakovich, Composer
Briggs Piano Trio Dmitri Shostakovich, Composer |
Author: Guy Rickards
The Piano Trio in E (1923) is, as one should expect by now of Gál, a model of Classical balance if not harmony or structure. Cast in a slow-fast-slow format, it is a work of (mostly) genial disposition, belying the post-Great War instability of Germany and, indeed, the composer’s fragile financial position. Perhaps this is represented in the central Allegro violente Scherzo, although the Trio is as sweet as could be. The playing throughout is simply exquisite: yes, it is a beautifully written gift for the three performers; but Briggs, David Juritz and Kenneth Woods make the most of it, as they do the earlier Variations on a Viennese ‘Heurigen’ Melody (1914), full of the innocence pre-Great War. Both works should be staples of the piano trio repertoire.
The coupling of Shostakovich’s Second Trio (1944) provides the greatest possible contrast, although it also has wartime – and Jewish – connections. This is a powerful and measured interpretation of arguably the greatest piano trio of modern times. I have heard faster accounts, and more outwardly (and mistakenly) virtuoso ones. The strength of this version is the primacy of the music. The closing sequence is the crux, the breathtakingly serene passage before the reprise of the ‘dance of death’. It is immaculately rendered here. Recommended with all possible enthusiasm.
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