Best Flute Concertos

The transverse flute (side-blown, in contrast to the recorder) is one of the oldest and most widely used wind instruments. In the Middle Ages (1000-1400) the transverse flute arrived in Germany and France from Asia via the Byzantine Empire. In this period, however, the recorder was by far more popular. In the late 15th c. the flute was taken up by military bands in Europe and in the late 16th c. transverse flutes began to be used in court and theatre music. In the 17th c. flutes also began appearing in chamber ensembles. Flutes in this period varied greatly in size and range. During the Baroque period, the transverse flute was redesigned. It was made in three or four joints with a conical bore from the head joint down. The conical bore design gave the instrument a wider range and a more penetrating sound, without sacrificing the softer, expressive qualities of the instrument. In addition to chamber music, the traverso began to be used in orchestral music, from opera and ballet to concertos. Although the flute became popular as a solo instrument, there were few professional flutists - often oboists acted also as flute players. In 1707, Jacques Martin Hotteterre wrote the first method book on playing the flute, followed by a famous exposition on the flute method by Johann Joachim Quantz in 1752.

Throughout the rest of the century the interest in flutes increased, peaking in the beginning of the 19th century. This interest also led to the acceptance of flutes in the symphony orchestra. Theobald Boehm began flute making - among other changes, adding keys to the flute. But with the Romantic era, flutes begin to lose favor (except as an instrument for home music) - there are almost no flute concertos written in the later 19th century. The instrument became again more popular in the early 20th century, for example among Impressionistic composers as Debussy. But although the flute was used more prominently in orchestral music, flute concertos remained rare even in the 20th century. The period during which most flute concertos were written was squarely the 18th century, from the Late Baroque to the Classical period.

1. Georg Philipp Telemann, Concerto for Transverse Flute, Strings and Basso Continuo in D Major, TWV 51:D2 (ca. 1716-1725).
It was in Telemann's concertos that, among other instruments, the new transverse flute - soon to be made fashionable by the galant style - first broke free of the soft-spoken confines of chamber music and proved itself capable of dominating an orchestra as solo instrument. Although conforming to the pattern of the Italian church sonata with its four movements in two pairs of slow-fast-slow-fast, Telemann drew on a wide variety of traditions and influences, with a strong whiff of France mixed in. But Telemann was above all a strong experimenter, both in what he asked from his solo instruments, as in his mixing of the colors of the orchestral palette. He eschews the Italian three-movement model of fast-slow-fast, and adheres to the German layout of four movements: slow-fast-slow-fast. The present concerto is fast-paced and allows the soloist ample scope.
Recording listened to: Wilbert Hazelzet, flute, with Musica Antiqua Koln directed by Reinhard Goebel (on authentic instruments) on Archiv (with five Telemann concertos for other wind instruments).

2. Leonardo Leo, Concerto for flute no 2 in G Major (probably after 1725).
Leonardo Leo (1694-1744) was a Neapolitan composer in the first place famous for his operas and sacred music, but he has also left an interesting body of instrumental works. As a graduate of the Naples conservatory, his style was founded on a mastery of counterpoint, but in his flute concertos he writes first and for all in the galant style. In early 17th c. Naples, flute music was popular in the mansions of the aristocracy and the city produced many virtuosi as well (often doubling on the flute and oboe). One factor in the popularity of the flute may have been the brief visit Johann Joachim Quantz (see below) made to Naples in 1725. Leo's second concerto starts with a solemn introduction marked "spacious in the French manner," adopting a stately dotted-rhythm after the style of a French overture. The Adagio boasts a highly expressive theme, consisting of a dialogue between flute and solo violin. The finale is delightfully fresh and dance-like. Leo's concerto is typical of the music of Naples, a city where composers were committed to making artifice and difficulty appear natural and simple.
Recording listened to: Enrico di Felice with L'Apotheose on Stradivarius (with other Neapolitan flute concertos).

3. Antonio Vivaldi, Concerto in C Major for Two Flutes, RV 533 (probably 1730s).
Despite the fame of his 6 concertos Opus 10, published in Amsterdam in 1728, Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741) was not a frequent composer for the flute. The two most famous concertos of Op 10, "Storm at Sea" and "The Night" were almost certainly written for the recorder. In fact, the orphanage-conservatoire for girls in Venice where Vivaldi worked, only acquired its first flute teacher, Ignazio Silber, in 1728, so relatively late in Vivaldi's career; and Vivaldi's first known use of the flute occurs in his opera Orlando from 1727. So his RV 533 that I have selected here, must be a late concerto. The fast-paced opening movement has an infectious energy. The slow movement is characterized by gentle simplicity and in the finale the energy returns with the flutes playing a sprightly melody against a rhythmically punchy bass-line. Interesting is the way Vivaldi handles the two flute parts: (1) in dialogue with minimal overlap of phrases, (2) imitating one another, (3) one instrument providing an accompaniment for the other and (4) both playing in parallel thirds or sixths. Vivaldi constantly interchanges these modes to achieve variety.
Recording listened to: Vivaldi Concertos by The Academy of Ancient Music directed by Christopher Hogwood (on authentic instruments) on L'Oiseau-Lyre (with other Vivaldi concertos).

4. Michel Blavet, Flute Concerto in A minor (1745). 
Michel Blavet (1700-68) was the foremost French flute virtuoso in the first half of the 18th c. He had an exciting and brilliant style of playing which was very different from the languorous manner previously dominant on the flute, for example in the works of Hotteterre. Blavet played in the Concert Spirituel and later in the Musique du Roi and at the opera. He also played quartets with Telemann when that composer visited Paris and became friendly with Quantz as well. He later turned down a post at Frederick the Great's court despite the high pay offered him. Blavet's compositions show an Italian influence. For the flute he composed twelve sonatas, six duos and concertos as well as arrangements for teaching. The first and last movement of the present concerto are in Italian style, the middle movement is a pair of French gavottes.
Recording listened to: Andreas Kröper, flute, and the Concertino Notturno Prague (on authentic instruments) on Campion (with concertos by Frederick the Great and Wendling).

5. Johann Joachim Quantz, Concerto for Flute in G Major (QV 5:174, No. 161 (1740-1750).
Johann Joachim Quantz (1697-1773) was a German flutist and composer. He composed 200 flute sonatas and 300 flute concertos, and wrote an important and exhaustive treatise on flute performance (1752). From 1728 he taught King Frederick II of Prussia, an eminent flutist, and moved to the court in Berlin in 1741 after Frederick became King of Prussia. In Berlin, Quantz' duties revolved around the king's private evening concerts, where the repertoire consisted for a large part of works by Quantz and Frederick himself. The Berlin style was characterized by an exceptionally refined use of dynamics and articulation. The heart of the present concerto, one of the best known by Quantz, is the magnificent slow movement, clearly demonstrating the originality and inventiveness of the composer.
Recording listened to: Benedek Csalog, baroque flute, and Aura Musicale directed by Balazs Mate (on authentic instruments) on Hungaroton (with three more flute concertos by Quantz).

6. Carl Philipp Emmanuel Bach, Flute Concerto in D Minor, Wq 22 (possibly around 1747).
Carl Philip Emanuel Bach (1714-1788) was the second (surviving) son of J.S. Bach and is known for his expressive and often turbulent "empfindsamer Stil" or "sensitive style." It is a mannered galant style in which the principles of rhetoric and drama were applied to musical structures. C.P.E. Bach, who was one of the foremost clavier players of Europe (he wrote a famous book on music theory and ethics in 1753), was from 1738 to 1768 in the employment of Frederick the Great in Berlin; from 1768 to 1788 he worked as successor to Telemann as music director in Hamburg. But C.P.E. Bach was not very popular at the Berlin court (proud of his university education, he was frequently seen in intellectual circles and made no concessions in his compositions to make them easier to play for the king) - his salary was only a fraction of that of Quantz or Graun. The first movement of the present concerto, which also exists in a harpsichord version, shows the influence of J.S. Bach, especially in the orchestral introduction. In contrast, the third movement has real Strum und Drang characteristics. Bach has the flute perform a true dialogue with the orchestra, providing a link to the Classical solo concerto.
Recording listened to: Machiko Takahashi with the Concertgebouw Chamber Orchestra conducted by Roland Kieft on Brilliant Classics.

7. Frederick the Great (Frederick II, King of Prussia), Flute Concerto No. 1 in G Major (possibly 1750s or later)
The German monarch Frederick the Great (1712-1786) was a patron of music as well as a gifted player of the transverse flute and composer. His compositions include 121 flute sonatas and 4 concertos modeled on the works of Johann Joachim Quantz, the German flutist and composer who became one of Frederick's court musicians and who wrote many flute sonatas and concertos for his royal patron. Besides Quantz, the king's court musicians also included C. P. E. Bach (who was the king's accompanist on the harpsichord and who also wrote flute concertos for him), Carl Heinrich Graun and Franz Benda. A meeting with Johann Sebastian Bach in 1747 in Potsdam led to Bach's writing The Musical Offering. Frederick's palace, Sans Souci near Potsdam, became a focus of high-quality music making. King Frederick's own compositions possess a gentle charm, as is especially evident from the Cantabile movement of the present concerto. The concerto is a fusion of early-Classical galant and Italian late-Baroque styles and the fast movements consist of an alternation of tutti ritornellos and solo episodes. It is conservative in keeping strictly to the rules laid down in Quantz' treatise on the flute from 1752, but the second movement shows more individuality.
Recording listened to: Andreas Kröper, flute, and the Concertino Notturno Prague (on authentic instruments) on Campion (with concertos by Frederick the Great and Wendling).

8. Franz Xavier Richter, Flute Concerto in E Minor (probably between 1747 and 1768).
Franz Xavier Richter (1709-89) was an Austro-Moravian violinist and composer, who spent most of his life first in Austria and later in Mannheim and in Strasbourg. Although of an older generation, he belonged to the so-called Mannheim School, known for its pioneering orchestral technique, developed together with the excellent Mannheim court orchestra. Richter did not write in the Storm-and-stress style of his colleagues, but the basic feature of his music was a soft-toned meditativeness, often with a hint of melancholy. His music is always well-balanced. The present flute concerto is a typical example of the transitional forms of the Mannheim composers between the Baroque and Viennese Classicism. It is still based on the traditional ritornello technique of the concerto grosso, but also introduces a new element of orchestral thematic design in its sequences of contrasting motifs - a step towards the thematic dualism of the classical sonata form. Another harbinger of the future is the tripartite design of the outer movements, which would become the sequence of exposition, development and recapitulation of the classical style.
Recording listened to: Robert Dohn with the Slovak Chamber Orchestra conducted by Bohdan Warchal on CPO (with other wind concertos by Richter). 

9. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Concerto in G for Flute and Orchestra, K 313 (1777)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-91) wrote this concerto after receiving a commission to compose three flute concertos and a pair of flute quartets from Ferdinand Dejean, a surgeon with the Dutch East India Company. Mozart met Dejean in Mannheim in October 1777 and was to receive 200 guilders for the works. In the end, however, he didn't complete the commission - he only wrote one original concerto and one quartet (besides reworking the oboe concerto he wrote the previous year for the flute) and received less than half the promised sum. The most substantial fruit of that commission is the present flute concerto, a long and difficult work that starts with a movement of great breath (maestoso) and fine writing for the flute. The Adagio ma non troppo has been called the soul of the concerto, with a melting melodic line that is one of the jewels of Mozart's early maturity. The concerto concludes with a decorous minuet in rondo form.
Recording listened to: Liza Beznosiuk, flute, and The Academy of Ancient Music directed by Christopher Hogwood (on authentic instruments) on L'Oiseau-Lyre.

10. Franz Anton Hoffmeister, Flute Concerto No 24 in D Major (1795).
Franz Anton Hoffmeister (1754-1812) was not only a prolific composer, but also a significant music publisher for Mozart and Beethoven. Born in southern Germany, Hoffmeister had come to Vienna to study law, but soon switched to music and by the 1780s had become one of the city's most popular composers. Prominent in Hoffmeister’s extensive oeuvre are works for the flute, including more than 25 concertos as well as chamber works. These works were composed with Vienna’s growing number of amateur musicians in mind, for whom the flute was one of the most favored instruments. The present concerto has a radiant and march-like character, also thanks to the use of trumpets and timpani in the orchestra. It starts with a graceful main theme. The first movement has symphonic dimensions and also calls for virtuosity from the orchestra, for example in the use of a "Mannheim crescendo." Hoffmeister used an alla polacca texture in the slow movement, with the usual strong accent on the downbeat of each bar. The final rondo is full of festive splendor, spotlighting the soloist's virtuosity.
Recording listened to: Bruno Meier, flute, with the Prague Chamber Orchestra on Naxos.

11. Friedrich Witt, Flute Concerto in G Major (1806)
Friedrich Witt (1770–1836) was a German composer who worked most of his life as Kapellmeister for the Prince of Würzburg. He was famous for his operas and the oratorio Der leidende Heiland, but also wrote symphonies, concertos and chamber music. His Symphony in C Major, the Jena, was once wrongly attributed to his exact contemporary Beethoven, with whom (as well as with the later Haydn) Witt shares certain characteristics of the period style. Witt's Flute Concerto is a work that demands considerable virtuosity from the soloist. The substantial orchestra includes trumpets and timpani, and the concerto starts in grand style with an orchestral introduction. After that, the solo flute introduces an elaborate first subject, leading to a second theme and other material offering every chance for technical display. The second movement is a lovely Adagio cantabile, and the concluding Rondo has a lively principal theme.
Recording listened to: Patrick Gallois with the Sinfonia Finlandia Jyväskylä on Naxos (with two symphonies by Witt).

12. Saverio Mercadante, Flute Concerto in E Minor No. 2 (1814)
Saverio Mercadante (1895-1870) was an Italian opera composer whose 60 operas today stand rather in the shadow of his contemporaries Donizetti and Bellini, although he was admired by Verdi as groundbreaking composer. Besides operas, Mercadante also wrote sacred music and concertos and chamber music featuring the flute. These last works date from the years 1814 to 1820 and were inspired by fellow conservatoire students and their virtuoso teachers. There are in all seven flute concertos; the one in E Minor (No. 2) is probably the most popular one and includes a sizable orchestra. The concerto is permeated with a rich bel canto lyricism, as if the flute were a singer in one of Mercadante's operas. At the same time, the concerto is a showpiece for the agility of the soloist and the possibilities of the flute. It starts with an Allegro maestoso, very demanding in virtuoso terms, after which follows a breathing space in the short Adagio. The finale is a Rondo russo: Alla giusto and this is indeed a bright and lovely dance with a Russian flavor, a favorite piece among flutists and the highlight of the present concerto.
Recording listened to: Patrick Gallois with the Sinfonia Finlandia Jyväskylä on Naxos (with flute concertos No 1 and No 4).

13. Alessandro Rolla, Concerto in D Major for Flute and Orchestra (probably around 1830)
Allessandro Rolla (1757-1841) worked for most of his life in Milan as violin and viola virtuoso, conductor, teacher and composer. In 1808 he became professor at the new Conservatoire of Music in Milan. He is known as the teacher of Paganini, but also left a considerable body of 500 compositions, which were published by music houses all over Europe. The flute concerto is a fine example of an instrumental work written in the first half of the 19th century, when the main attractions for Italians were the voice and the theater. The soloist is treated virtuosically. The Allegro starts with a slow introduction, after which the flute takes up a bright theme. This whole movement has a sprightly atmosphere. The second movement is a short and simple Adagio, after which the concerto concludes with a Rondo variato, which demonstrates great inventiveness.
Recording listened to: Mario Carbotta with the Orchestra da Camera Milano Classica conducted by Massimiliano Caldi on Dynamic (with Concerto for Basset Horn and two symphonies by Rolla).

14. Peter Benoit, Flute Concerto (Symphonic Tale) Op. 43a (1865).
Peter Benoit (1834-1901) was a Belgian (Flemish) composer, who was educated at the Brussels Conservatoire. Although he also worked in Paris, he finally settled in Antwerp where he founded the Royal Flemish Music Conservatory. He concentrated on vocal and choral music on Flemish texts, but was also active as educator, conductor and music administrator. In 1865 Benoit wrote Two Symphonic Tales for piano and orchestra and for flute and orchestra - a turning point in his career, as these would become his last purely instrumental works. Both are large scale, romantic works, inspired by romantic legends from the composer's native region. The Symphonic Tale for flute and orchestra starts with a "Will-O'-The-Wisps" Scherzo vivace, containing two main themes, a nervous and fiery scherzo theme and a more lilting melody. The second movement is a Romance that starts with a horn solo theme, varied by the flute. The finale is again a "Will-O'-The-Wisps" dance, similar to the opening movement. In all, this is a very original concerto.
Recording listened to: Gaby van Riet with the Royal Flanders Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Frederic Devreese on Naxos (with piano concerto etc.).

15. Carl Reinecke, Flute Concerto Op. 283 (1908)
Carl Reinecke (1824-1910) was an important master from the influential "Leipzig School," which dominated German music in the 19th c. He was a long-standing conductor of the Gewandhaus Orchestra and director of the Leipzig Conservatoire, but also a prolific composer who saw himself as the guardian of the tradition of Mendelssohn and Schumann. The flute concerto was written when he was 84 and starts with a charming, floridly inventive Allegro, a glowing recollection of what was good in previous times. This is followed by an elegiac Lento e mestoso, a piece of both charm and substance, and the concerto concludes with  a fiery polonaise. A lively work that fully displays Reinecke's striking invention, beauty of sound, and mastery of instrumentation.
Recording listened to: Aurèle Nicolet with the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra conducted by Kurt Masur on Philips (with flute concertos by Nielsen and Busoni).

16. Carl Nielsen, Concerto for Flute FS 119 (1926)
Carl Nielsen (1865-1931) studied at the Royal Danish Academy of Music in Copenhagen, after which he worked for 16 years as a second violinist in the prestigious Royal Danish Orchestra before - in 1916 - taking up a teaching post at the Royal Academy. He is generally regarded as the greatest Danish composer and was one of the most important pioneers of new music in the early 20th c. His monumentally expressive symphonies derive from a neo-Romantic inspiration. The flute concerto was written after the symphonies, and belongs to a later period in Nielsen's life. It reflects the modernistic trends of the 1920s and lacks tonal stability. The work consists of two movements and the solo instrument dominates the dark colors of the orchestra (which lacks flutes and trumpets). The first movement leads up to a virtuoso double cadenza for flute and clarinet (in this same period, Nielsen also wrote a Clarinet Concerto). Much of this movement resembles chamber music between the flute and various instruments. The second movement is founded on the contrasting expression of allegretto and adagio sections, leading to a march-like finale. The works ends with a series of playful slides on the bass trombone. A very personal statement and possibly the greatest flute concerto ever written - a work of real substance.
Recording listened to: Aurèle Nicolet with the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra conducted by Kurt Masur on Philips (with flute concertos by Reinecke and Busoni).

17. Jacques Ibert, Concerto for Flute (1934)
Jacques Ibert (1890-1962), a born and bred Parisian, studied at the Paris Conservatoire and had an active career as conductor and musical administrator, besides being an eclectic composer. His early works for orchestra are in a lush, Impressionistic style, but Ibert also wrote lighthearted, even fluffy works like the present flute concerto. His music is generally festive and gay, tinged with lyricism and gentle humor. Like his other four concertos, the flute concerto was conceived in "chamber" rather than "symphonic" textures, allowing the characteristics of the flute to emerge unimpeded. Ibert strove to find themes appropriate to the sonorous qualities of the flute. The flute concerto is a mercurial three movement work, that became immediately popular on its first performance in 1934. Especially the third movement is very felicitous and just good fun.
Recording listened to: Timothy Hutchins with the Montreal Symphony Orchestra conducted by Charles Dutoit on Decca (with Escales, Pairs, Bacchanale).

Classical Music Index

Best Piano Trios

Over the centuries of its history, the Piano Trio (in the combination of piano, violin and cello) has gained a repertoire exceptional in size and richness, one which includes some of the most widely admired of all chamber works. But instead of focusing on the principal works such as the trios by Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Mendelssohn, Schumann, Brahms, Ravel and others, I would like to introduce here a number of so-called "unjustly forgotten trios" (often by "unknown composers") which are however rich in beautiful melodies and artistic invention. They are among my personal favorites and deserve more ears!

[Gouvy]

1. Heinrich Marschner, Piano Trio No 2 in G minor Op. 11 (1840).
The German composer Heinrich Marschner (1795-1861) was in the first place a composer of Romantic operas (with such ominous titles as The Vampire) in the period between the death of Weber and the advent of Wagner. Besides opera, Marschner's only other compositions consisted of a few chamber music works, of which the piano trios were lavishly praised by Schumann. These fine works are clearly the fruit of considerable time and effort. The second trio starts with a big and haunting Allegro, as if inhabited by the romantic atmosphere of one of Marschner's colorful operas. The second movement is a wonderful romance, great in its simplicity. After the whirlwind scherzo (a fast ride on horseback) follows the Allegro vivace which concludes the trio in magnificent style. A fresh and original trio that is the epitome of Romanticism.
Recording listened to: Beethoven Trio Ravensburg on CPO (with Piano Trio No. 5).

2. Charles-Valentin Alkan, Trio for piano, violin and bass in G minor Op. 30 (1841).
Paris-born Charles-Valentin Alkan (1813-1888) was a child prodigy on both the violin and the piano. As a piano virtuoso he was regarded as the equal of Liszt, while also being one of the best piano composers - although his music is ferociously difficult to play. However, he gave up his concert career in his mid thirties and lived as a recluse, which made his reputation fade until rediscovery in the late 20th c. The piano trio was a very apt form for Alkan, for as a violinist he also knew how to write for string instruments, but Alkan was also an unorthodox composer as can be heard in the sometimes unusual interplay between the instruments. In the first movement, there is a sharp contrast between the violent first theme and the lovely, lyrical second theme. The scherzo is marked by a rapid rhythmic exchange between the three instruments, while the Lentement has an unusual, somber melody and a long piano cadenza. The finale is a tremendous perpetuum mobile on a powerful rhythmic theme, crowned by a climax of extraordinary intensity.
Recording listened to: Trio Alkan on Naxos (with violin and cello sonatas).

3. Robert Volkmann, Piano Trio in B flat minor Op. 5 (1850).
Robert Volkmann was a German composer who lived most of his time in Budapest, as piano teacher and reporter for the Allgemeine Wiener Musik-Zeitung. Volkmann produced two piano trios. Op. 8 in F is a somewhat lightweight affair (although with a beautiful melody in the first movement), but Op. 5 (published in 1852) is a stormy and passionate piece. More than that, it was the breakthrough work of the composer who had until then worked in virtual obscurity - when it caught the ears of Franz Liszt (to whom it was dedicated) and Hans von Bülow, it was hailed as a masterpiece and they proceeded to play it in various European cities. The trio does not keep to sonata form but seems more like a free fantasy. The first movement works up to a tremendous dramatic climax. The second movement is an intermezzo with a mellow character. The last movement has again a forceful theme. Despite the unconventional structure, the harmonic style is traditional, and Volkmann didn't really belong in the camp of Liszt and Wagner. Later in life, Volkmann befriended Brahms, and his music is now often seen as a link between Schumann and Brahms.
Recommended Recording: Beethoven Trio Ravensburg on CPO (both Volkmann trios).

4. Woldemar Bargiel, Piano Trio No. 1 in F Major Op. 6 (1851).
Woldemar Bargiel (1828-97) was Clara Schumann’s half brother, and through her introduction, received the support of both Robert Schumann and Felix Mendelssohn. He studied at the Leipzig Conservatory with Ignaz Moscheles (piano) and Niels Gade (composition). Bargiel held positions at the conservatories in Cologne and Rotterdam before accepting a position at the prestigious Hochschule fur Musik in Berlin where he taught for the rest of his life. Bargiel composed relatively little, but everything he wrote shows a solid craftsmanship and rich inventiveness. That is also clear from his first Piano Trio, which was written in 1851 and published in 1855 with the help of Clara and Robert. After a slow introduction (which is unrelated to rest of the trio) follows a beautiful romantic aspiring theme in a triumphal march rhythm. The second movement Andante has two extremely lovely themes and its serenity is only briefly disturbed. The Scherzo is very Schumanesque and proceeds in continuous dactylic, dotted rhythms, interrupted only by a charming central section with lyrical string contributions against piano arpeggio figuration. The finale is a massive fugue, which is at the same time a breathtaking moto perpetuo. This trio is not only a demonstration of great craftsmanship, it also shines in its melodic inventions. There is an excellent balance between the three instruments.
Recording listened to: Trio Parnassus on MD&G Records (with violin sonata, etc.; other two trios by Bargiel on companion disk).

5. Théodore Gouvy, Piano Trio No. 3 in B flat Major Op. 19 (mid 1850s).
Louis Théodore Gouvy (1819-1898) was born on the French-Prussian border and grew up with a dual French and German cultural heritage. This also meant he fell between the cracks of two nations. Moreover, after his study in Paris, he decided to become a French symphonist at a time that the opera ruled supreme. Throughout most of the 19th century, the French, and especially the Parisians, were opera-mad and not particularly interested in purely instrumental music. The last third of his life Gouvy lived almost entirely in Germany where he was more appreciated. His compositions, and especially his chamber music, were held in high regard in Germany, Austria, England, Scandinavia and Russia. Gouvy was a master of form and possessed a deft sense of instrumental timbre. He was a gifted melodist whose music is a joy to hear. Gouvy’s Piano Trio No. 3 was written with the freshness and energy of a young man. The opening movement has quite an uplifting bounce in the form of an attractive heroic theme played by the strings against a pulsing accompaniment in the piano. It is a movement full of excitement. The Allegretto begins like a children's dance but is disturbed by a powerful march in the trio. The work's center of gravity is the long Adagio, which evokes a brilliant, breezeless summer day. This inventive trio ends with a sparkling Vivace, full of vigor.
Recording listened to: Münchner Klaviertrio on Orfeo (with second piano trio).

6. Josef Rheinberger, Piano Trio No. 2 in A Major Op.112 (1878).
Joseph Gabriel Rheinberger (1839-1901) was born in Vaduz, the capital of Liechtenstein. When his musical talent was discovered, he was sent to the Royal Conservatory in Munich where he studied with Franz Lachner. Rheinberger was active in Munich as organist and choral master, and also taught for more than 40 years composition at the Royal Conservatory - among his students were Humperdinck, Wolf-Ferrari, George Chadwick and Wilhelm Furtwangler. He is in the first place known for his organ compositions, but his chamber music is also important. The Second Piano Trio was composed in the autumn of 1878 and is in four well-balanced movements. It is classical in form, but highly romantic in content. The genial opening melody of the first movement is unforgettable. The second movement, Andantino espressivo, is built around a gorgeous and languid melody, full of longing. This is followed by a Minuetto, with a duet between the strings underpinned by a flowing piano part. The finale is joyous and full of élan and re-introduces melodies from the first movement before ending with a bracing coda.
Recording listened to: Göbel Trio Berlin on Thorofon (with Nonet).

7. Ernest Chausson, Piano Trio in G minor Op. 3 (1881).
Ernest Chausson (1855-1899) first studied law before entering the Paris Conservatory in 1879 where he studied with Jules Massenet and César Franck. The Piano Trio in G minor was written in 1881 at just about the time Chausson entered Franck’s class, and consists of four large movements. We can surely hear Franck's influence, especially in the first movement with its thick textures, dark harmonic progressions and abrupt dynamic changes. The opening movement starts with a twenty-bar slow introduction, in which the motto themes are somewhat theatrically presented, in succession on the cello and the violin. The piano provides a restless underpinning to the motivic phrases of the strings in a dark, intense minor mode. The second movement is a short and light intermezzo and the only movement that contains no thematic allusions to other parts of the trio. The third movement has a beautiful D minor piano tune, in fact the second motif from the first movement played at half speed. The final movement, too, was inspired by Franck’s use of cyclic themes and the work comes full circle on a dramatic note, with a grand peroration, during which the motto themes return with greatly expanded scoring. This trio shows an exceptional sense of architecture and lyricism.
Recording listened to: Pascal Devoyon (piano), Philippe Graffin (violin), Gary Hoffman (cello) on Hyperion (with Poème, Andante et Allegro etc.).


8. Arthur Foote, Piano Trio No 1 in C minor Op. 5 (1882-84).
Arthur Foote (1853-1937) was the first American composer of classical music to be wholly trained in the United States. Born in Salem, Arthur Foote studied composition under John Knowles Paine at Harvard University. In 1875 Foote earned the first master’s degree in music ever granted by an American university. Until this time Foote had considered music a hobby, but now he decided to devote his life to it. He became a private teacher of the piano and organ, and was for 32 years the organist of the First Church, Unitarian, in Boston. Many of his orchestral compositions were first performed by the Boston Symphony Orchestra. He influenced subsequent generations of musicians through his didactic writings and in the first two decades of the twentieth century was considered a central figure among American composers.

Foote was especially known for chamber music, art songs, and music for choirs. His training was European classical, in the style of Mendelssohn and Schumann, while he himself was in the first place inspired by the newer music of Brahms and Dvorak. His music is lyrical and serene. There are broad, stately melodies, as well as moments of romantic rhapsody, but in the end everything is tightly bound together by a classical structure. The first Piano Trio is a good case in point. It starts with an expansive movement characterized by a romantically yearning melody in C minor. The second theme somewhat resembles a New England church hymn. After an elfin-like, dancing Scherzo, we get a lyrical movement with a languid and sad melody and a dramatic atmosphere of unrest. The finale again brings a church hymn and closes satisfyingly after a long and exciting coda.
Recording listened to: Arden Trio on Marco Polo (with second piano trio).

9. Josef Bohuslav Foerster, Piano Trio No. 2 in B flat Major Op. 38 (1894).
Josef Bohuslav Foerster (1859-1951) was born in Prague and studied organ and composition, taking over from Dvorak as chief organist in one of Prague's leading churches. His wife Berta Foersterová-Lautererová was a leading soprano and he followed her when she was engaged at various European opera houses, first to Hamburg and later to Vienna. In both cities Foerster worked mainly as a music critic. After their return to Prague, Foerster taught for many years at the Conservatory. Except in his early works, Foerster was not a nationalistic composer. He didn't employ a Czech idiom like Dvorak and Smetana, but wrote intensely personal music in an international idiom. The second of his three piano trios was written in 1894 shortly after the death of his younger sister. This loss is evident in the elegiac adagio that concludes the work. But the first two movements are quite brightly colored (the second movement is a brilliant scherzo), and the grief in the last movement is not of the tormented kind, but rather gives rise to meditative, melancholy music. The mood is tinged with a sophisticated sense of resignation and the end is muted, like a silent sigh.
Recording listened to: Foerster Trio on Supraphon (all 3 Foerster trios).

10. Julius Röntgen, Piano Trio No. 6 in C minor Op. 50 (1904).
Julius Röntgen (1855-1932) was born into a musical family in Leipzig and studied with Carl Reinecke, the director of the Gewandhaus Orchestra, as well as Franz Lachner in Munich. His professional career took Röntgen to Amsterdam, where he helped to found the Amsterdam Conservatory and the subsequently world famous  Concertgebouw Orchestra. He composed throughout his life and especially after his retirement. Though he wrote in most genres, chamber music was his most important area. Röntgen had a special tie with the piano trio, as he played together as a trio with Carl Flesch and Pablo Casals, as well as later with two of his sons. His 1904 trio was dedicated to the Danish composer Carl Nielsen and indeed the trio's Andante has the character of a Scandinavian folk melody (although it is an original melody by Röntgen). This is the movement with the greatest charm. With its long and flowing lyrical melodies the first movement has Brahmsian qualities as does the last. Both are filled with rich and varied harmonies and a balanced interplay between the three instruments.
Recording listened to: Storioni Trio on Ars Produktion (with piano trios 9 and 10).

11. William Hurlstone,  Piano Trio in G Major (1905)
William Yeates Hurlstone (1876-1906) was born in London and studied at the Royal College of Music with Charles Villiers Stanford. He was very talented and in 1905, at the age of 28, he was appointed Professor of Harmony and Counterpoint at the Royal College. Tragically, he suffered from bronchial pneunomia and less than a year later, he was dead. Although he also wrote a Piano Concerto and several other orchestral works, Hurlstone is in the first place remembered for his excellent chamber music works, of which the Piano Trio is one. It is happy and genially flowing music. The Allegro moderato opens with a lyrical theme on the cello, which is deceptively simple. Soon several harmonic detours and surprises follow, including the third-related key in which the second theme, molto appasionato, appears. In the Andante a lyrical cantabile theme is contrasted with more dramatic material. The third movement is a playful Scherzo with a hint of folk song - a very upbeat, English theme. The exciting finale is a lively Rondo characterized by undulating accompaniment and displaying Hurlstone's contrapuntal dexterity. A reflective second subject provides a beautiful contrast. The work is brought to a close by an exciting accelerando.
Recording listened to: The Dussek Piano Trio on Dutton (with String Quartet etc.).

12. Alexander Gretchaninov, Piano Trio No 1 in C minor Op. 38 (1906).
Alexander Gretchaninov (1864-1956) was born in Moscow and studied at the Moscow Conservatory with Anton Arensky and Sergei Taneyev, and later in St. Petersburg with Rimsky-Korsakov. His works achieved high acclaim in Russia - in 1910 the Tsar awarded him an annual pension, But after the Revolution Gretchaninov didn't feel comfortable anymore in Russia and emigrated, first to France in 1925, then in 1939 to his final destination, the U.S. The first piano trio was dedicated to Taneyev. The opening movement is propelled forward by passionate feelings and an urgent first theme. It makes a very "Tchaikovskian" impression. The Lento assai has a beautiful violin theme and the Allegro vivace which concludes the three part work is energetic and highly rhythmical and brings the trio to a vivid conclusion somewhat in the style of Rachmaninov's Second Piano Concerto.
Recording listened to: The Moscow Rachmaninov Trio on Hyperion (with Piano Trio No 2 and Cello Sonata).

13. Erich Wolfgang Korngold, Piano Trio in D major, Op. 1 (1910). 
Erich Wolfgang Korngold (1897-1957) was an Austro-Hungarian composer who astonished the musical world as a composing wunderkind. Mahler proclaimed him a genius at age nine (!), after which he started lessons with Alexander von Zemlinsky. The child prodigy later developed into a major Viennese opera composer (Die Tote Stadt). In 1934 he moved to Hollywood where he became a pioneer in composing film scores - along with  Max Steiner and Alfred Newman, he is one of the founders of film music. His serious music was considered out of vogue at the time he died, but is now experiencing a reawakening of interest. Korngold wrote orchestral music (including a symphony and violin concerto), piano music and chamber works (such as string quartets), songs, operas and film scores. His Piano Trio was composed when he was only thirteen years of age. Premièred by leading instrumental luminaries in Vienna, it announced a precocious and major talent in its handling of bold and complex harmonies and musical form, taking the style of Richard Strauss to new levels of opulent beauty. In four parts, this is a substantial late-romantic work. The elegant swirls that open this piece evoke Strauss’s elegant waltzes and strike the listener as elegant but also mysterious ruminations. The layered textures and fervent themes impart a strong sense of space and expansiveness to the whole work.
Recording listened to: Beaux Arts Trio on Philips (with Zemlinsky Trio).

14. Mieczyslaw Weinberg, Trio for Piano, Violin and Cello Op. 24 (1945).
Mieczysław Weinberg (also spelled as Vainberg; 1919-1996) was a Soviet composer of Polish-Jewish origin. He lost most of his family in the Holocaust and fled in 1939 to the Soviet Union. He was educated at the Warshaw Conservatory and moved to Moscow after meeting Shostakovich, with whom he remained close. There is a decided Jewish ethnic influence in Weinberg's music, such as of Klezmer ensembles. The Piano Trio is a substantial work written when Weinberg was only 26 and had just moved to Moscow. The trio offers powerful music with a genuine vitality. The first movement is a Prelude and Aria, with a pizzicato passage a la Shostakovich; then follows a Toccata with irregular rhythms; next a Poem which conjures up the atmosphere of an Orthodox hymn; and finally a sublime finale.
Recording listened to: Anatoli Sheludyakov, piano, Irina Tkachenko, violin, Tatiana Zavarskaya, cello, on Olympia (with Children's Notebooks for piano - all first recordings).

15. Edmund Rubbra, Piano Trio in One Movement, Op. 68 (1950)
Edmund Rubbra (1901-1986) was an English composer who devised his own distinctive style based on single melodic ideas from which he let the music grow. There is a vocal quality to his overall style. Rubbra's teacher was Gustav Holst (with whom he shared an interest in mysticism). He wrote for all kinds of ensembles (his eleven symphonies are famous), paying much attention to choral music and chamber music. These chamber music works reveal the essence of Rubbra's music more directly than large-scale works can. Especially his approach to form was very individual, a balancing act between improvisatory freedom and intellectual control. Once he had found the right material, he "let the music take care of itself." The Trio in One Movement is a remarkable work, serenely beautiful but at the same time informed with a quiet passion. Although in one movement, there are three distinct sections. The work starts with a reflective, soulful theme presented in octaves by the violin and the cello, with accompanying figuration in the piano. Interestingly, the strings continue unrolling the thematic material in octaves. After the exposition, a cantabile theme introduced by the piano follows. The music then grows and swells to bell-like sounds. We are now halfway the twenty minute work. After an exciting and rhythmically complex Episodio scherzando, comes the final section, a long-breathed theme followed by three variations (Rubbra calls these "meditations"), the still heart of the work. The first meditation is introduced by a chordal passage marked Adagio. When the last meditation dies away with a tolling D at the bottom of the piano, the cello restates the opening theme, leading to a brief coda in which descending scales in violin and cello again emphasize the tolling of bells, bringing the work to an exultant conclusion.
Recording listened to: Endymion Ensemble on Dutton (with Piano Trio No. 2, Oboe Sonata and other chamber works by Rubbra).

Chamber Music Index