The Trio Gemelli, made
its debut in Madrid in 1994 and comprises
John (clarinet) and Adrian (cello) Bradbury
(who are identical) twins and Emily
Segal (piano). It has given a series
of successful concerts both in the UK
and in continental Europe.
The Brahms Trio is
a late work that shows the composer
at his rich romantic best, it is not
designed as a showpiece for the clarinet
as all three instruments are of equal
importance, with the cello often taking
the lead. The dreamy slow movement is
especially fine. The three young players
play with maturity and the work sounds
most impressive.
Hugh Wood was born
in Wigan in 1932 and has been involved
in teaching music for most of his life.
His compositions are mainly in the chamber
music field and the Trio Gemelli premiered
this trio. The work is short, with three
brief movements and is uncompromisingly
modern in sound. The opening movement
concentrates on each musician as a solo
instrumentalist, with long solos for
each instrument in turn. The second
movement is a scherzo march of considerable
character. Unusually the finale is a
slow movement intended as a tribute
to two friends who died in 1997. However
the trio comes across as lacking in
emotion and does not fit in well with
the accompanying works on the CD.
Beethoven wrote his
Opus 11 trio in 1798 and it is sometimes
played in a contemporary arrangement
for violin, cello and piano. Although
a relatively early work, it shows Beethoven
at his peak. The first movement is an
allegro con brio and is of fascinating
complexity. It is followed by a slow
movement, played here with great feeling.
The last movement is a theme and variations,
the theme is a jaunty tune from an opera
by J. Weighl — it reminds us that Beethoven
is unsurpassed at writing variations,
even based upon the most trivial of
tunes (see for example the Variations
for Piano Trio on Ich bin der Schneider
Kakadu.
The playing is exemplary
and it is recorded in a warm acoustic.
The disc is well presented, with good
notes.
Arthur Baker
See also reviews
by Raymond
Walker and Paul
Shoemaker
This review has previously been published
in the FRMS Bulletin ©
Trio Gemelli