Dvořák’s Second Piano Quintet and Rachmaninoff’s Early Masterpiece
Rachmaninoff (pictured) was still a student when he composed his Trio élégiaque; it was his first work to be performed beyond the walls of the conservatoire, and the audience was enthusiastic. Inspired by his great musical hero, Tchaikovsky, and his imposing piano trio, the young composers had created a work of his own. Three years later, in 1893, the year of Tchaikovsky’s death, Rachmaninoff composed a second Trio élégiaque. The first was left forgotten in a drawer until it resurfaced by chance in 1935.
In this edition of Radio Romantica, the Storioni Trio performs this melancholic, single-movement work, following a performance of Dvořák’s Second Piano Quintet. The performance is given by the magnificent Pavel Haas Quartet, accompanied by Boris Giltburg, a Russian-born pianist who trained in Tel Aviv.
Dvořák’s Piano Quintet, Op. 81, explores the full range of Romantic chamber music, including the characteristic excursions into Bohemian folk music that are so typical of this composer.
Playlist:
- Antonín Dvořák – Piano Quintet in A major, Op. 81
Pavel Haas Quartet / Boris Giltburg - Sergei Rachmaninoff – Trio élégiaque in G minor
Storioni Trio
