À la mémoire d'un grand artiste: Piano Trios by Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninoff & Goldenweiser

Featuring

Ilona Then-Bergh
Wen-Sinn Yang
Michael Schäfer
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Sergei Rachmaninoff
Alexander Goldenweiser

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Compositional Technique

Rachmaninoff's original 1894 version of the Trio élégiaque uniquely replaces the piano with a harmonium in some parts of the second movement, giving it a funereal character.

Composition History

Alexander Goldenweiser, a lifelong friend of Rachmaninoff, composed his Piano Trio in E minor in memory of Rachmaninoff after his death in 1943.

Composition History

The three piano trios on this album form a "chain" of memorial compositions, reflecting a tradition of composers writing requiems for deceased friends and teachers.

Composition History

Rachmaninoff's Trio élégiaque in D minor was written immediately after Tchaikovsky's unexpected death in 1893, expressing his sorrow for his mentor.

Album & Artwork

This album is titled "À la mémoire d'un grand artiste" (In memory of a great artist), which serves as its overarching motto.

Recording & Production

This recording features the rarely performed Taneyev version of the fugue in Tchaikovsky's Piano Trio, which includes improvements suggested by the premiere pianist Sergei Taneyev.

Composition History

Tchaikovsky's Piano Trio in A minor, op. 50, was composed in memory of Nikolai Rubinstein, a pianist and founder of the Moscow Conservatory who supported Tchaikovsky's early career.