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Track(s) taken from CDA67719

Piano Trio in F sharp minor, Hob XV:26

composer
No 40; dedicated to Rebecca Schroeter; second movement is the same as that for Symphony No 102

The Florestan Trio
Recording details: March 2008
Henry Wood Hall, London, United Kingdom
Produced by Andrew Keener
Engineered by Simon Eadon
Release date: February 2009
Total duration: 16 minutes 20 seconds

Cover artwork: The Gypsy Tent by William Shayer (1811-1892)
© Wolverhampton Art Gallery / Bridgeman Images
 

Other recordings available for download

London Fortepiano Trio

Reviews

‘Tomes and her partners identify themselves fully with the emotional scale of the works … there is so much from the Florestan to stop us in our tracks … a very special disc, recorded in detailed, front-row sound’ (Gramophone)

‘These are altogether lively and alert performances, with repeats imaginatively varied, and a real feel for the subtle balance of the music’ (BBC Music Magazine)

‘Four of Haydn's later trios, including the familiar 'Gypsy Rondo', are played here by the Florestan Trio with a captivating grace’ (The Observer)

‘The articulation of Susan Tomes and her colleagues is alert and imaginative, with a 'period-instrument' feel for texture, effortlessly capturing Haydn's mercurial wit’ (The Sunday Times)

‘The Florestan is the ultimate in gentility and grace … the playing, interpretation, and recorded sound are perfection; every note, every phrase, every balance is beyond criticism’ (Fanfare, USA)

‘It is a pleasure to hear the Florestans strike their expected and convincing balance. They are a Haydnesque ensemble in the very best sense’ (NewClassics.com)

‘It would be hard to find crisper performances of Haydn's piano trios. The Florestan Trio is not a period instrument ensemble, but it never makes us wish it were, for these musicians don't play Haydn as if it were Beethoven or Schubert. The interpretations are articulate, stylish and vivid; accents spit and tingle; and passagework whizzes sharp and serrated as a saw blade. They take risks: some fast movements move at blistering speeds, and the exaggerated upbeats and shifts in tempo make their free-wheeling Gypsy Rondo sound like the real thing. Slow movements sing, and the balance—so crucial in these trios—is heavenly’ (The Globe and Mail, Canada)

‘This first volume in a projected series of the complete Haydn piano trios promises many future delights. The performances are, by and large, excellent … kudos particularly are in order for pianist Susan Tomes. These are keyboard works first and foremost, and she leads with great sensitivity and elegance’ (Classics Today)

‘What comes through vividly here is Haydn’s capacity to surprise; and the discovery of the music is in listening to them. Suffice it to say that the music’s essential grace, lightness and sparkle is affectionately captured by the members of The Florestan Trio, who are also alive to the musical and emotional diversions that Haydn imaginatively and wittily incorporates … with excellent recorded sound and an illuminating booklet note by Robert Philip, this release offers much joy’ (Classical Source)
The third trio dedicated to Rebecca Schroeter, Hob XV:26, is in the unusual key of F sharp minor, and is subtle and shifting in its moods. The quiet opening of the first movement is tinged with melancholy, but it soon moves into cheerful major keys, and despite occasional touches of sadness the overall mood is quite flamboyant. The tricky turns of phrase in the piano-writing show that Mrs Schroeter must have been an accomplished pianist. The slow movement is the same as that for Haydn’s Symphony No 102, though in a different key, and is often described as an adaptation of the orchestral original. But the music is delicately florid and rather improvisational in style, with sudden shifts of key and atmosphere. These sound more at ease in the intimate setting of a trio, suggesting that the trio version may well have been written first. The finale is in the manner of a minuet—a style of finale made popular by J C Bach. Haydn takes this idea and makes something intensely personal out of it. It is like a wistful memory of a dance, rather than the dance itself, with a melancholy elegance which is as subtly balanced in mood as the first movement.

from notes by Robert Philip © 2009

Hob XV:26, le troisième trio dédié à Rebecca Schroeter, est dans un inusuel fa dièse mineur et arbore des climats subtils, changeants. L’ouverture paisible du premier mouvement est nuée de mélancolie mais rejoint bientôt d’allègres tons majeurs et, malgré quelques pointes de tristesse, l’atmosphère est, dans l’ensemble, des plus flamboyantes. À voir les épineuses tournures de l’écriture pianistique, Mrs Schroeter devait être une pianiste accomplie. Le mouvement lent, qui reprend, dans une autre tonalité, celui de la Symphonie no 102 de Haydn, est souvent décrit comme une adaptation de l’original orchestral. Mais la musique est délicatement fleurie, dans un style plutôt improvisé, avec de brusques changements de tonalité et d’atmosphère apparemment plus à l’aise dans le cadre intime d’un trio, signe que cette version fut peut-être bien la première. Le finale est une façon de menuet—un style popularisé par J.-C. Bach, mais dont Haydn fit quelque chose d’intensément personnel. C’est plus un nostalgique souvenir de danse que la danse elle-même, avec une élégance mélancolique au climat aussi subtilement balancé que dans le premier mouvement.

extrait des notes rédigées par Robert Philip © 2009
Français: Hypérion

Das dritte, Rebecca Schroeter gewidmete Trio Hob XV:26 steht in der ungewöhnlichen Tonart fis-Moll mit subtil changierenden Stimmungen. Der leise Anfang des ersten Satzes ist von Melancholie angehaucht, wechselt jedoch bald in fröhliche Durtonarten und trotz gelegentlicher trauriger Momente ist die allgemeine Stimmung eher überschwänglich. Die schwierigen Wendungen im Klavier zeigen, dass Mrs. Schroeter eine versierte Pianistin gewesen sein muss. Der langsame Satz ist der gleiche wie in Haydns Symphonie Nr. 102, aber in einer anderen Tonart, und wird oft als Transkription des Orchesteroriginals beschrieben. Die Musik wird jedoch delikat ausgeziert und ist eher improvisatorisch im Stil und voll plötzlicher Wechsel von Tonart und Atmosphäre. Diese klingen im intimen Milieu eines Trios komfortabler, was andeutet, dass das Trio womöglich zuerst geschrieben wurde. Das Finale ist in der Manier eines Menuetts gehalten—ein Finalestil, der durch J. C. Bach populär gemacht wurde. Haydn übernimmt diese Idee und macht sie intensiv persönlich. Es ist eher wie eine wehmütige Erinnerung an einen Tanz als der Tanz selbst, mit einer melancholischen Eleganz, deren Stimmung genauso feinfühlig ausgewogen ist wie die des ersten Satzes.

aus dem Begleittext von Robert Philip © 2009
Deutsch: Renate Wendel

Other albums featuring this work

Haydn: Piano Trios Nos 38-40
CDA66297Download only
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