TCHAIKOVKSY, P.I.: Piano Trio, Op. 50 / RACHMANINOV, S.: Trio élégiaque No. 1 (Mezzena, Patria, Ballario)

Highly praised for his orchestral works, Tchaikovsky never reached great popularity as a chamber music composer but, although his chamber output does not comprise many titles, it does includes works of distinct value, such as the beautiful but little known Trio for violin, cello and piano, Op.50 which we are featuring on this release. The work was composed in memory of his friend Nikolaj Rubinstein, who had passed away at the age of 46 and was considered at the time one of the greatest European pianists. Rachmaninoff was one of the finest pianists of the first half of the 1900s and a gifted composer. After the Bolshevik coup he left his native Russia and moved abroad, where he gained fame as a performer, especially in the United States. As a composer, Rachmaninoff is nowadays considered the natural successor to Tchaikovsky’s style within Russian music between the 19th and 20th centuries. The Trio élégiaque No.1 in G minor for piano, violin and cello was written in the short space of four days in 1892, when Rachmaninoff was only 19. It consists of a single extended movement (Lento lugubre) in classic sonata form. It was published posthumously, in 1947. Having known each other personally for a long time, Franco Mezzena, Sergio Patria and Elena Ballario began their artistic partnership in 2015 as a natural consequence of their mutual respect and interpretative affinity. Franco’s precise and rigorous violin playing, Sergio’s inborn expressivity and Elena’s musical balance are the three main characteristics that give their trio all the necessary means to best express the music they unanimously choose to perform.