JESSICA TASKOV, flute
BEN CAPPS, cello
YELENA GRINBERG, piano

From Yelena Grinberg:

Dear Friends!

Jessica, Ben, and I are thrilled to invite you for a very special evening of MUSIC FOR FLUTE, CELLO, AND PIANO, featuring four of the finest trios ever written for flute, cello, and piano by Beethoven, Hummel, Kuhlau, and Weber. Ludwig van Beethoven’s youthful and rarely-heard Trio in G Major for piano, flute, and bassoon (cello), WoO 37 (1786) was discovered amongst Beethoven’s papers after his death. Composed while still in his teens, it demonstrates the galant Classical influence of Haydn and Mozart across its three movements – the cheerful opening Allegro, the central melancholy Adagio, and the delightful Thema Andante con Variazioni finale – yet already bears the stamp of Beethoven’s fiery temperament and originality, owing to its rare and unusual instrumentation. A Bohemian-born virtuoso pianist-composer, Johann Nepomuk Hummel (1778-1837) was a child prodigy, a pupil of Mozart, and a friend and rival of Beethoven whose music displays great charm, vocal lyricism, brilliant virtuosity, and a broad emotional range. The influence of Beethoven’s Sturm und Drang style can be felt in Hummel’s turbulent Trio in A Major for flute, cello, and piano, op. 78 (1818) that opens with a slow dramatic introduction (Adagio) followed by seven brilliant variations on a wistful Russian folk theme. A younger contemporary of Hummel, Friedrich Kuhlau (1786-1832) was a German-born Danish concert pianist and a prolific composer of Danish opera, who knew Beethoven personally and was greatly influenced by his style. Alongside his many dramatic and solo piano works, Kuhlau wrote numerous works for the flute and thus was nicknamed during his lifetime as “the Beethoven of the flute.” Kuhlau’s Grand Trio in G Major for flute, cello, and piano, op. 119 (1832), originally scored for piano and two flutes, is a sparkling work cast in three contrasting movements: a lyrical and ruminative Allegro moderato, a noble and deeply felt Adagio patetico, and a charming Rondo: Allegro finale. Born the same year as Kuhlau, Carl Maria von Weber (1786-1826) was a German pianist, conductor, guitarist, critic, and one of the first significant composers of the Early Romanticism famous for his supernatural opera, Der Freischutz (1821-22), and his magic opera, Oberon (1826), his two Clarinet Concertos, his four piano sonatas, and a total of fourteen chamber music works, nearly half of which involve the flute. His elegantly crafted writing evokes the Biedermeier sensibility and the Classical elegance which come to the fore in his scintillating Trio in G minor for flute, cello, and piano, op. 63 (1818) – one of Weber’s most substantial chamber works that was written as a souvenir for convivial Hausmusik soirees, just as you will enjoy this evening! It unfolds in four expansive movements: a brilliant opening Allegro moderato, a Beethovenian Scherzo: Allegro vivace, in the style of a spirited waltz, a folklike slow movement (“Shepherd’s Lament”) which alludes to Goethe’s 1802 poem about a lovelorn shepherd, set by many composers including Franz Schubert, and a vibrant Finale: Allegro, full of melodic variety and virtuosic fireworks for all three players alike, that brings the work to an exhilarating close. Don’t miss this enchanting evening of Music for Flute, Cello, and Piano!

Jessica, Ben, and I look forward to seeing you all!