Friday, October 20, 2006
8:00 P.M.
Center for the Arts, Concert Hall
Susan Tomes, piano
Anthony Marwood, violin
Richard Lester, cello
Of the Florestan Trio’s recording of the Schubert B-flat Trio on tonight’s program, The Times of London said that their performance was “marvelously alive, played with palpable joy and an unerring sense of ensemble.” On this return performance in Middlebury, the trio will also play works by Haydn and Dvořák.
Performing Arts Series Director Paul Nelson commented, "We first heard the Florestan Trio a number of years ago from a seat high up in the steeply pitched Queen Elizabeth Hall in London. We loved the concert, dare we say, in particular, because of Susan Tomes’s piano playing, a revelation of chamber musicianship. This isn’t to say that her colleagues aren’t on her level. They are, but something about her playing draws one to it for special attention and admiration. The trio return to Middlebury playing a program they’ll also do in London’s Wigmore Hall this autumn: music by Haydn and Dvořák, and Schubert’s magnificent B-flat Trio."
To read the press release, please click here.
Reserved Seating: $15/12/5. http://go.middlebury.edu/tickets or 802-443-MIDD (6433).
Pre-performance dinner: Rehearsals Cafe, 6:30 P.M. Reservations required. http://go.middlebury.edu/tickets or 802-443-MIDD (6433).
Concert Program:
Piano Trio in E-flat Major, Hob. XV:30 HAYDN
Allegro moderato
Andante con moto
Presto
Piano Trio in G minor, Op. 26 DVORAK
Allegro moderato
Largo
Scherzo: Presto
Finale: Allegro non tanto
Intermission
Piano Trio in B-flat Major, D. 898 SCHUBERT
Allegro moderato
Andante un poco mosso
Scherzo: Allegro
Rondo: Allegro vivace
For program notes, please contact Events and Residency Manager Allison Coyne Carroll at carroll@middlebury.edu
Artist Biography:
Winners of the Royal Philharmonic Society Award 2000
‘The Florestan Trio defines great chamber music playing.’ (San Francisco Chronicle). In honoring the Florestan Trio with its award for chamber music in 2000, the Royal Philharmonic Society recognized the achievements of the Trio in a repertoire in which long-standing, dedicated ensembles have always been rare. The Florestan Trio has now pursued this path for a decade, and listeners all over the world express their appreciation of the Trio’s devotion to a field of music which they believe deserves wholehearted commitment.
The Trio’s recordings on Hyperion have received outstanding reviews. All their discs have been nominated for Gramophone Awards, and are recommended choices in major collectors’ guides. Their disc of the first two trios by Schumann won a 1999 Gramophone Award and a host of other accolades. Their CD of French piano trios is one of Hyperion’s best-sellers in the chamber music field, and their two discs of Schubert captured several critics’ votes as the best versions now available. In 2005 they were short-listed for two awards; BBC Radio Three’s Listeners’ Award, and a Gramophone Award for chamber music. Their latest discs, of trios by Mendelssohn and Saint-Saëns, have garnered extraordinary praise in the past few months.
They celebrated their tenth anniversary season with the completion of their Beethoven recording cycle for Hyperion and with three sold-out performances of the Beethoven Trios in London’s Wigmore Hall. The recordings have been highly acclaimed: ‘Perhaps the finest contemporary exponents of this repertoire performing on modern instruments today.’ (Sunday Times) ‘Everything about this release is distinguished’ (Fanfare, USA). Their latest disc, of Mendelssohn piano trios, has been rapturously received: ‘The Florestan were born to play these works’ (Times).
The Trio are popular visitors at major European venues such as the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, the Brussels Conservatoire, De Singel in Antwerp, and the Vienna Konzerthaus. This season, they will tour in Italy, in Sweden and in Germany. Past tours have taken them to South America, Israel, Australia, New Zealand and Japan. They have twice toured the USA to great acclaim, and return for another major tour in October 2006. They have had works specially composed for them by Judith Weir, Peteris Vasks, Sally Beamish, John Casken, Rudi Martinus van Dijk and Dmitri Smirnoff.
A focal point of the Trio’s year is its own festival in Peasmarsh, East Sussex. Each June they present four days of concerts centered on the Trio, but also welcoming guest artists of international stature. Perhaps uniquely, they each appear during the festival as concerto soloists with orchestras such as the Academy of St Martins in the Fields. The Trio has founded a charitable company, The Florestan Trust, which aims to develop public awareness and knowledge of music through the presentation of concerts, educational work, and the commissioning of new works. Visit the trio’s website at www.florestantrio.com