Notes and Editorial Reviews
CAFÉ MUSIC
•
Tr Solisti
•
BRIDGE 9296 (64:42)
PIAZZOLLA
Las estaciones porteñas
(arr. Bragato/Bachmann).
Le grand tango
(arr. Kutnowski).
SCHOENFIELD
Café Music.
TURINA
Piano Trio No. 2.
GERSHWIN
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class="ARIAL12">(arr. Bachmann)
Porgy and Bess:
It Ain’t Necessarily So
This is a party disc, and it ain’t necessarily a tea party—not the way these musicians launch themselves into the sultry Latin world of Piazzolla, or recreate the bustling ragtime band of Schoenfield. The trio is made up of violinist Maria Bachmann, cellist Alexis Pia Gerlach, and pianist Jon Klibonoff. Anyone who knows their other recordings (Bachmann and Klibonoff’s Ravel Sonata for starters, or Moravec’s
Tempest Fantasy
, written for the trio plus clarinet) will know how completely these players go for it. This release of high-class light music is no exception to their rule. (Incidentally, Robert Maxham contributed a fascinating interview with Bachmann in
Fanfare
30:6.)
The two works by Piazzolla are quite well known by now, admittedly in various differing arrangements. Both were originally scored for the composer’s mixed ensemble. While the absence of the bandoneón (Piazzolla’s instrument) is to be regretted, the combination of piano, violin, and cello suits his music in terms of punchy rhythmic attack and (in this case) an expressive use of
portamento
. Special effects are also employed: in
The Seasons
, some of the original percussion part is rapped out on the cello, and at the opening of the “Fall” movement Bachmann provides an eerie wind-like sound—or rather her violin does—produced by playing on the wrong side of the bridge with hard pressure.
A gentler approach is needed for Turina, chief among a number of composers who brought music of the Basque region of Spain into the salon. Turina’s chamber works with piano are possibly the most congenial part of his output. In three brief movements, his Second Piano Trio of 1926 combines the spirit of Spanish dance with the textures of Debussy and Ravel. Again, Trio Solisti faces the music with a sure sense of the style required.
The three-movement suite,
Café Music,
by Detroit-born Paul Schoenfield, has been recorded at least twice before. In my experience, Schoenfield’s jazzy and occasionally sentimental klezmer-inflected music divides listeners. Personally, I succumb to it completely.
Café Music
offers a soulful bluesy lament flanked by boisterous ragtime that brings to mind the soundtracks of animated “jazz” cartoons of the 1930s. A virtuosic performance by James Ehnes, Edward Arron, and pianist Andrew Russo exists on an all-Schoenfield CD (reviewed in 31:5), but this new one is its equal. Bachmann evinces an even more personal identification with the material than does the sweet-sounding Ehnes, and Klibonoff is only a little less dazzling than Russo.
In the final track, Bachmann offers her own version of the Heifetz arrangement of “It Ain’t Necessarily So,” newly rearranging the piece to include cello. At times here, I thought the bluesy slides from both stringed instruments crossed the fine line from idiomatic into queasy. Despite that, the disc is smartly integrated as a program, and easily greater than the sum of its parts. Sound is close and detailed. In short: a good time that should be had by all.
FANFARE: Phillip Scott
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Works on This Recording
1.
Las estaciones porteñas (4) by Astor Piazzolla
Orchestra/Ensemble:
Trio Solisti
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1967-1970; Argentina
2.
Le Grand Tango by Astor Piazzolla
Performer:
Maria Bachmann (Violin),
Alexis Pia Gerlach (Cello),
Jon Klibonoff (Piano)
Orchestra/Ensemble:
Trio Solisti
Period: 20th Century
Written: Argentina
Length: 9 Minutes 13 Secs.
3.
Café Music by Paul Schoenfield
Orchestra/Ensemble:
Trio Solisti
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1986; USA
4.
Trio for Piano and Strings no 2 in B minor, Op. 76 by Joaquin Turina
Orchestra/Ensemble:
Trio Solisti
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1933; Spain
5.
Porgy and Bess: It ain't necessarily so by George Gershwin
Performer:
Maria Bachmann (Violin),
Alexis Pia Gerlach (Cello),
Jon Klibonoff (Piano)
Orchestra/Ensemble:
Trio Solisti
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1935; USA
Length: 2 Minutes 49 Secs.
Notes: Arranger: Maria Bachmann.
6.
Las estaciones porteñas (4): Otoño porteño by Astor Piazzolla
Performer:
Alexis Pia Gerlach (Cello),
Jon Klibonoff (Piano),
Maria Bachmann (Violin)
Orchestra/Ensemble:
Trio Solisti
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1969; Argentina
Length: 5 Minutes 14 Secs.
Notes: Arrangers: Maria Bachmann; José Bragato.
7.
Las estaciones porteñas (4): Invierno porteño by Astor Piazzolla
Performer:
Maria Bachmann (Violin),
Alexis Pia Gerlach (Cello),
Jon Klibonoff (Piano)
Orchestra/Ensemble:
Trio Solisti
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1970; Argentina
Length: 5 Minutes 54 Secs.
Notes: Arrangers: Maria Bachmann; José Bragato.
8.
Las estaciones porteñas (4): Primavera porteña by Astor Piazzolla
Performer:
Alexis Pia Gerlach (Cello),
Jon Klibonoff (Piano),
Maria Bachmann (Violin)
Orchestra/Ensemble:
Trio Solisti
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1970; Argentina
Length: 4 Minutes 54 Secs.
Notes: Arrangers: Maria Bachmann; José Bragato.
9.
Las estaciones porteñas (4): Verano porteño by Astor Piazzolla
Performer:
Maria Bachmann (Violin),
Alexis Pia Gerlach (Cello),
Jon Klibonoff (Piano)
Orchestra/Ensemble:
Trio Solisti
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1967; Argentina
Length: 7 Minutes 23 Secs.
Notes: Arrangers: Maria Bachmann; José Bragato.
Featured Sound Samples
Las estaciones porteñas (Piazzolla): Otoño porteño
Piano Trio no 2 (Turina): II. Molto vivace
Customer Reviews
Average Customer Review: 
( 2 Customer Reviews )
Trio Solisti: On Top April 6, 2013
By L. Catalano (San Francisco, CA) See All My Reviews
"Lately, I have had a passion for the tango music of Astor Piazolla. He was a unique composer who straddled the classical and the pop world of music. There was no one like Astor. The Trio Solisti brings a wonderful performance that Astor would have sanctioned. It doesn't hurt to have the Schoenfield Café Music and the Turina Trio to remind us just how good a chamber group the Trio Solisti is. What they do with the Piazolla Music is passionate, well-played, and virtuosic. It was great to have their take on Astor's wonderful music. I give this my unqualified recommendation!"
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three awesome musicians February 19, 2013
By d. abrahams (palm bay, FL) See All My Reviews
"I RECOMMEND HIGHLY JUST RECENTLY I WAS FORTUNATE TO HAVE TICKETS TO ONE OF THEIR CONCERTS AT A CHURCH WITH AWESOME ACOUSTICS, HERE IN BREVARD COUNTY."
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