Triptych (Works by Amy Beach, Natalie Klouda and Clara Schumann) Monte Piano Trio

• Amy Beach (1867-1944): Piano Trio in A Minor, Op. 150:
• 1 I. Allegro 04:40
• 2 II. Lento espressivo 05:28
• 3 III. Allegro con brio 04:26
• Natalie Klouda (1984- ): Piano Trio No. 1 "Fantasy Triptych":
• 4 I. Explorations (Clara) 04:54
• 5 II. Reflections (Johannes) 04:44
• 6 III. Vexations (Robert) 02:59
• Clara Schumann (1819-1896): Piano Trio in G Minor, Op. 17:
• 7 I. Allegro moderato 10:26
• 8 II. Scherzo. Tempo di menuetto 04:49
• 9 III. Andante 04:31
• 10 IV. Allegretto 07:41
• Total Runtime 54:38

Info for Triptych (Works by Amy Beach, Natalie Klouda and Clara Schumann)

On their second GENUIN release, the young, multi-award-winning Monte Piano Trio from Frankfurt turns their attention to three great women composers. And this is not all that’s remarkable about the production: Amy Beach, Natalie Klouda (in a work commissioned by the Monte Piano Trio), and Clara Schumann wrote the compositions during three completely different phases of their lives. But when we hear the ensemble’s rich and full-bodied sound on this CD, we have little thought about who wrote the music and who recorded it so flawlessly: the Romantic sonorities of all three works flow over us so limpidly and naturally that we only want to sit back and enjoy!

Monte Piano Trio:

Francesco Sica, violin
Claude Frochaux, cello
Irina Botan, piano
Daniel Rowland, viola

The Monte Piano Trio
has performed in major concert halls such as Berliner Philharmonie, Laeiszhalle Hamburg, Alte Oper Frankfurt, Wigmore Hall, Royal Festival Hall and Covent Garden in London, Daning Theater in Shanghai and the Romanian Atheneum. Their television and radio broadcasts have included BBC, WDR, CBS, DLF, SWR, TVR and Radio Clasica.

Formed in 2008 at the Musikhochschule in Frankfurt am Main, The Monte Piano Trio were subsequently invited to play at renowned festivals such as Schleswig-Holstein, Osnabrück, Mozartfest Würzburg, Mecklenburg-Vorpommen, Heidelberger Frühling, Stift International Festival in Holland and Constella Festival in the USA. The trio’s engagements have taken them to Germany, USA, UK (including performances at the Wigmore Hall, Conway Hall and Kings Place), Italy, Spain, Sweden, Austria, Romania, Turkey, Holland and Brazil. They won first prizes at the Mirabent Competition in Spain and at the European Karlsruhe Competition in Germany and were also prize winners at several international competitions including Schumann (Germany), Maria Canals (Spain), Brahms (Austria) and Almere (Holland).

The trio is featured on the sound track of “Maestro”, a documentary film which explores the life of musicians through the eyes of Paavo Järvi. In 2015 they released their CD, “From a Tender Age”, in partnership with Genuin Classics. It was chosen as CD of the Month by Stereo Magazine, highly recommended (five stars) by Fono Forum and was featured in the “Klassik Stars” programme on Bayerischen Rundfunk (BR). The Monte Piano Trio’s second recording for the Genuin Label, “Tryptich” will be released in May 2017.

Having received a Diploma with Honors from the Musikhochschule in Essen, the trio continued their studies at “Escuela Superior de Musica Reina Sofia” in Madrid where they graduated with the highest honours. The Trio has received artistic guidance from Menahem Pressler, Günter Pichler, Ralf Gothóni, Dirk Mommertz, Ferenc Rados and Eberhard Feltz.

In 2012 the trio founded their own festival, Kammermusikfest Sylt in Germany, which runs annually.

Booklet for Triptych (Works by Amy Beach, Natalie Klouda and Clara Schumann)