Joachim Raff - Piano Trios Nos. 2 & 3 (Trio Opus 8)

Information

Composer: Joachim Raff

1. Piano Trio No. 2 in G major, Op. 112: I. Rasch, froh bewegt
2. Piano Trio No. 2 in G major, Op. 112: II. Sehr rasch
3. Piano Trio No. 2 in G major, Op. 112: III. Mäßig langsam
4. Piano Trio No. 2 in G major, Op. 112: IV . Rasch, durchaus belebt
5. Piano Trio No. 3 in A minor, Op. 155: I. Quasi a capriccio - Allegro agitato
6. Piano Trio No. 3 in A minor, Op. 155: II. Allegro assai
7. Piano Trio No. 3 in A minor, Op. 155: III. Adagietto
8. Piano Trio No. 3 in A minor, Op. 155: IV. Larghetto - Allegro

Trio Opus 8
Michael Hauber, piano
Eckhard Fischer, violin
Mario de Secondi, cello

Date: 2001
Label: cpo
https://www.jpc.de/jpcng/cpo/detail/-/art/Joachim-Raff-1822-1882-Klaviertrios-Nr-2-3/hnum/3425936

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Review

ARTISTIC QUALITY: 9 / SOUND QUALITY: 8

Joachim Raff (1822-82) is little known today, but he enjoyed considerable success as a composer and teacher during his lifetime. Although he composed an appreciable quantity of orchestral music, Raff was most adept in the chamber music medium. His piano trios are fine examples of his inventiveness, craftsmanship, and gift for melody. Though Trio No. 2 in G major (1863) sounds Brahmsian in its tender opening phrase, it nevertheless goes its own way, displaying Raff’s novel approach to individual voicing and thematic development. Beethoven comes to mind in the beautiful theme and variations movement, while the rollicking finale features a repeated episode distinctly Tchaikovskian in character.

The Trio No. 3 in A minor, composed seven years later, follows the same basic pattern of movements. After an ardent opening allegro agitato, a light-hearted scherzo delightfully suggests Schubert’s Trout Quintet. Another theme and variations slow movement follows (presenting the opportunity for some fine solo cello work by Mario de Scondi), and the finale returns to the minor mode with a brisk and lively Hungarian dance. The ensemble Trio Opus 8 offers uniformly stylish, impassioned performances, and although CPO’s up-close recording gains clarity at the expense of depth and low bass, this imperfection won’t prevent you from enjoying this engaging, entertaining music.

-- Victor Carr Jr., ClassicsToday

More reviews:
http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2001/Dec01/Raff.htm
http://www.raff.org/records/reviews/chamber/03.htm
https://www.amazon.com/Raff-Piano-Trios-2-3/dp/B00005MAV2

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Joachim Raff (May 27, 1822 – June 24 or June 25, 1882) was a German-Swiss composer, teacher and pianist. He worked as Liszt's assistant at Weimar from 1850 to 1853, helping in the orchestration of several of Liszt's works. From 1878 he was the first Director of, and a teacher at, the Hoch Conservatory in Frankfurt, where he employed Clara Schumann and a number of other eminent musicians as teachers. His pupils there included Edward MacDowell and Alexander Ritter. Raff was very prolific, and by the end of his life was one of the best known German composers, though his work is largely forgotten today.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joachim_Raff

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Trio Opus 8 was formed in 1986. Its name follows numerous compositions for piano trio bearing the opus number 8 - Brahms, Chopin, Pfitzner and Shostakovich. They studied at the Stuttgart Academy of Music and in master classes with Trio di Trieste, György Sebők and Leon Fleisher. Trio Opus 8 made its first published appearance in January 1986 and won several prizes in the following years. Since then, the Trio has performed across Europe, make radio and television production, and released records and CDs for labels such as cpo, Bayer Records, Tacet and Arte Nova.

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