NIKOLAÏ LUGANSKY / MISCHA MAISKY / VADIM REPIN…
Saint-Saëns’s finest qualities shine in his Trio No. 1 where formal clarity and rhythmic energy combine with lyricism of the highest order. A trio of exceptional musicians (Nikolaï Lugansky, Vadim Repin and Mischa Maisky) performs this chamber gem, joined afterwards by violinist Alexandra Conunova and violist Blythe Teh Engstroem for Franck’s paroxysmal Quintet.
Programme
CAMILLE SAINT-SAËNS (1835-1921)
Piano Trio No. 1 in F major Op. 18
(Lugansky, Repin, Maisky)
Interval
CÉSAR FRANCK (1822-1890)
Piano Quintet in F minor FWV 7
(Lugansky, Repin, Conunova, Teh Engstroem, Maisky)
Artist(s)
- Alexandra Conunova violin
- Vadim Repin violin
- Blythe Teh Engstroem viola
- Mischa Maisky cello
- Nikolaï Lugansky piano
Find out more
It is hard to imagine two temperaments more different than those of Saint-Saëns and Franck. A sense of proportion and balance characterise the former, while the latter’s music overflows with feverish passion. Written in 1864, the Trio No. 1 stands out for its Andante, which uses the rustic melody of a hurdy-gurdy that Saint-Saëns is said to have heard on a journey through the Auvergne. Full of mischief, the Scherzo is precisely calibrated, with its syncopations and repeated notes. Perhaps this helps explain why the composer of The Carnival of the Animals left the stage without taking a bow (he was playing the piano part) on the night of the 1880 premiere, when César Franck wished to dedicate his Quintet to him in public. Of this work, which Debussy wittily described as ‘paroxysm all the time’ and in which the most extreme pianissimo and fortissimo markings abound, history has retained a work of burning lyricism, a fundamental (and exhilarating) milestone in the history of French music.
