George ENESCU (1881–1955)
Piano Trio No. 1 in G minor (1897) [28:41]
Anton ARENSKY (1861–1906)
Piano Trio No. 1 in D minor, Op. 32 (1894) [33:25]
Trio Enescu (Gabriele Gylyte (piano), Alina Armonas-Tambrea (violin), Edvardas Armonas (cello))
rec. February and April, 2016, Loge “Zur Einigkeit,” Frankfurt am Main, Germany
GENUIN GEN16447 [62:07]
On the surface, combining these two first essays in the genre,
written three years apart, is a good idea. They are both very clearly products
of the nineteenth century, Romantic and overflowing with lovely melodies.
Admittedly, there is a significant difference between the two composers: Enescu
a teenager, just beginning his career and yet to find his mature style, Arensky
in his thirties, his style well established, and with this work arguably his
finest, certainly far and away his most recorded.
This completes the set of Enescu trios for the eponymous ensemble: they recorded
the mature A minor trio and Serenade Lointaine a couple of years
ago for Genuin. While there is not a full review of the recording on this
site, I did mention it in my Piano Trio survey, rating their performance of
the A minor as the pick of the few available.
With the Schumannesque G minor, the field is even narrower: this is only the
second recording that I can find. The other, by the Brancusi Trio on Zig Zag
Territoires, includes all three works, making it considerably better value.
There is a marked difference in tempos and style between the two: the Brancusis
are almost two and a half minutes faster, injecting a great deal of energy
into their performance. This is surprising, as the opposite applied in the
A minor trio, where Trio Enescu were quicker, more dramatic and energetic.
In the G minor here, they are smoother than their competitors, and given the
work is the product of a teenager, perhaps the extra energy is better. Nevertheless,
in isolation, this is a fine performance of a work that I actually prefer
to the mature one.
Unfortunately, I can’t say the same about the Arensky, one of my favourite
trios. It has more than thirty recordings, and while I can’t claim to
have heard them all, this is not one of the better ones. The first movement
lacks the singing qualities I hear in the Beaux Arts Trio, and the Scherzo
misses the sparkle given by the Trio
Wanderer (Harmonia Mundi) and Spectrum
Concerts Berlin (Naxos), for example. Trio Enescu seem to have missed
the essential nature of the work.
There is no doubting the basic quality of their playing. I have an aversion
to harshness in the strings, and there is never any hint of that here. The
sound quality is natural and clean, without being too close, and the notes
are well written. If you bought the first volume, you will probably want this
to complete your Enescu set.
David Barker
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