The Kempf Trio, featuring pianist Freddy Kempf, violinist Pierre Bensaid, and cellist Alexander Chaushian, is a London-based ensemble of musicians in their twenties, known for their chamber music performances.
Composition History
Tchaikovsky composed his Piano Trio despite his initial reservations because he felt it was impossible to commemorate a great pianist like Rubinstein without a prominent piano part, but a concerto or fantasy would be too 'showy'.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Tchaikovsky initially believed the combination of violin, cello, and piano was 'unnatural' and 'artificial' because string instruments and piano lacked equality and homogeneity.
Composer Biography
Nikolai Rubinstein, to whom Tchaikovsky dedicated his trio, was a pianist, conductor, and director of the Moscow Conservatory who helped Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto in B flat minor achieve international success.
Compositional Technique
Tchaikovsky's Piano Trio is structured in two parts: a 'Pezzo elegiaco' (elegiac piece) and a set of variations based on a Russian folk-song, which, according to Nikolai Kashkin, represent highlights from Rubinstein's life.
Historical Context
In Russia, the piano trio genre often took on the character of a requiem or a musical act of mourning, a tradition established by Joseph Haydn.
Composition History
Tchaikovsky's Piano Trio in A minor, Op. 50, is dedicated 'A la mémoire d'un grand artiste' ('to the memory of a great artist'), referring to his friend and mentor Nikolai Rubinstein.
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