Hyperion Records

Both the Piano Trio in F sharp minor, Op 1, and the Violin Sonata in D minor, Op 2, were probably conceived whilst Scharwenka was still studying at Kullak’s Academy, although the young composer was quick to attract sufficient attention for Breitkopf und Härtel, the famous German music-publishing house, to accept these early compositions, which duly appeared in print in 1869. Dedicated to his brother Philipp, the trio is respectably conservative both in structure and content, as may be expected from a student work, and follows the usual four-movement pattern, with a short ‘Adagio sostenuto’ introduction preceding the main first movement ‘Allegro con brio’. The second movement, ‘Andantino quasi Allegretto’, has an almost Schubertian quality, whilst the scherzo, with its contrasting trio section, together with a decisive finale, indicates how strong an influence the music of Schumann was to Scharwenka during his early years.

from notes by Martin Eastick © 2002