Leoš JANÁČEK (1854-1928)
String Quartet No. 1, The Kreutzer Sonata (1923) (arr. piano trio by Miloš Štědroň) [18:02]
Antonín DVOŘÁK (1843-1904)
Eight Slavonic Dances Op. 46 No.2 in E minor (1878) [5:02]
Piano Trio No.2 in G minor, Op.26 (1876) [28:01]
Ondřej KUKAL (b.1964)
Piano Trio Boj s pádem (2014) [16:58]
Petrof Piano Trio
rec. July 2015, Hradec Králové and February 2014, Martinů Hall, Academy of Arts, Prague (Dvořák Trio)
ARCO DIVA UP0181-2 131 [69:07]
There are two novelties here - the world premiere recording
of Ondrej Kukal’s Piano Trio and Janáček’s Piano Trio Kreutzer
Sonata. Yes, you read that correctly – Piano Trio, not String Quartet.
The Trio is known to have been composed and first performed in 1909 in Brno
but it was then lost. The arrangement has been accomplished by Miloš
Štědroň.
The notes – in Czech, Spanish, Japanese and shaky English - honestly
admit that the legitimacy of Štědroň’s work is up to
the interested listener to assess. My own assessment is that since there is
surely little documentary evidence as to what that original trio sounded like
- and that therefore this is not putative reconstruction so much as an arrangement
for piano trio of the existing quartet – the work must stand or fall
on its viability in the new medium. Inevitably the loss of two-fiddle sonority
devitalises certain passionate elemental qualities inherent – I very
much miss the febrile Moravian tonal density they bring to this work, and
the companion quartet – whilst the piano brings other qualities. There
are gains in thematic clarification, possibly – the weight of the ensemble
is lightened – but the razory intensities of the quartet version are
diminished, indeed made occasionally vapid, in this arrangement. The percussive
nature of the piano tends to graft a different aural perspective onto music
to which one has become wholly accustomed.
One can test Kukal’s compositional mettle in his 2014 Piano Trio Boj
s pádem (which would translate as 'Fight with the Fall',
or 'Fight with Fall') which was premiered by the Petrof Piano
Trio in July 2015. It’s a single-movement piece lasting 17 minutes and
is packed with interest. Though stern, indeed angular, it’s also full
of loquacious vibrancy, and introduces some quite vivid folkloric elements
too. The terpsichorean element – very Czech – as well as lyric
stretches shares space with some poignant, indeed introspective paragraphs.
Adagio sections recur. There’s a beautiful hymnal passage before Kukal
injects some animated and urgent writing toward the spirited finale. This
is a worthwhile addition to the catalogue of tonal, exciting and traditionally-based
piano trio repertoire of Kukal's country.
There are two pieces by Dvořák. The Slavonic Dance in E minor is delightfully
done and then there is the ‘bonus’ - a substantial one but without
which the disc would have been of ridiculously short timing – of the
Piano Trio in G minor, Op.26. This is a live recording, made in Martinů
Hall in Prague in a much more billowing acoustic than the rest of the programme.
which was made in the Petrof studio in Hradec Králové. The Petrof trio is
especially penetrating in revealing the deep vein of melancholy encoded in
this work. No matter how thematically confident, the eternal note of sadness
keeps drawing in over the shingle. Even in the Scherzo there’s moment
of tristesse before the trio. Only the Polka-inspired finale largely escapes.
This finely played bonus reflects well on this excellent ensemble. Whether
this is a plausible programme I am not sure. I hope the Kukal Trio doesn’t
put off potential listeners – it’s a delight – and the Janáček
can give food for speculative thought, whatever my strictures.
Jonathan Woolf
| Support us financially by purchasing this through MusicWeb for Ł12 postage paid world-wide. |
 |