Auerbach Weinberg Dvorak Trio Zimbalist

The renowned artists, violinist Jascha Heifetz and cellist Gregor Piatigorsky, joined forces in 1949 at Chicago's Ravinia Festival. Twelve years later, and now good friends, both artists were in semi-retirement from the concert stage, yet enjoyed their evenings of chamber music with friends. Here they conceived The Heifetz-Piatigorsky Concerts as a way to share their love of chamber music with the public. They aimed to present repertoire not often heard in concert and then record them. The Heifetz-Piatigorsky Concerts continued for several years, with a series of performances in Los Angeles, San Francisco and New York that included a range of distinguished guest artists. The last of these concerts was in 1974 when Heifetz ended his performing career.

Dvorak had an ambivalent relationship with Classical and Romantic traditions, something that is clearly exemplified in his piano trios. The Piano Trio in E minor, Op. 90 is a daring late work that uses popular moods and freer forms consisting of six Dumky – a melancholic and poetic musical form that draws from the composer inexhaustible melodic creativity. The Piano Trio in F minor, Op. 65 was influenced by the death of the composer’s mother and also by Dvorak having heard Brahms’ Piano Quintet, Op. 34, a work composed in the same key. Cyclic elements and fiery drama permeate the writing. “Individually excellent, they are even more impressive together”, wrote the Gazzetta di Mantova after a concert by the Italian-Swiss Trio des Alpes, thereby describing one of this Trio’s essential qualities: three independent, all-round successful personalities meeting as a trio. What attracts them is the quintessence of chamber music: dialogue, a shared sound and the blending of three instruments into a single whole.