Haydn & Mendelssohn Piano Trios features The Esterházy Trio from Hunnia Records.

Of Haydn’s forty-one piano trios, the two-movement Trio in E-flat minor, Hob. XV: 31 is particularly noteworthy. The first movement, an Andante in the rare key of E-flat minor, is dominated by rich melodic and harmonic variations. The theme appears not only in its original version, but also in a variant in major. In contrast to this rather serious music, Haydn completed the trio with a lively Allegro already written a year earlier, subtitled Jacob’s Dream, though Haydn later erased it.

The first movement of Mendelssohn’s trios begins with a ravishing theme introduced by the cello and violin, spanning 39(!) measures, which already makes clear why the trio enjoys such great popularity. Further impressive themes and a clearly recognisable musical form determine the further course of this movement, whereby the increasingly virtuosic treatment of the piano part – just as then in the last two movements – is particularly striking. The second movement, with its elegiac melody introduced by the piano and then taken over by the strings, is reminiscent in character of the widespread songs without words that accompanied Mendelssohn through all periods of his creative life. In the 3rd movement, a lively scherzo, Mendelssohn evokes his elfin dances so typical of many of his compositions. Finally, the last movement is dominated by a rhythmic theme, only slightly interrupted, ending in the stormy fortissimo of the trio.

The Esterházy Trio was founded with the kind cooperation of Duke Antal Esterházy in the spring of 2006. The aim of this foundation was intensive cultivation of chamber music, especially to make the works of classical masters for piano trios better known and more popular. The wide repertoire of the trio, ranging from classical works to 20th century masterpieces, covers almost all stylistic epochs of chamber music literature. The three artists had many appearances in the international music scene and now they want to bundle their hearings and abilities in the Esterházy Trio.

Esterházy Trio
Ernó Sebestyén, Violin
Ferenc Bognár, Piano
Tamás Mérei, Cello