Omega Ensemble: Beethoven's Trio

Program
Mendelssohn: Piano Trio No. 1 in D Minor, Op. 49
Schoenberg: Verklärte Nacht, Op. 4 (arr. Edward Steuermann)
Beethoven: Trio in E-Flat Major, Op. 38

About The Music
Critics were not always kind to Beethoven, whose Clarinet Trio was initially pronounced ‘unnatural’ due to its variety of keys and strikingly colourful variations which make it one of his most thrilling trios. Originally for string sextet, Schoenberg’s Transfigured Night is an early masterpiece by the composer, performed in this program in Edward Steuermann’s brilliant and imaginative version for piano trio. Mendelssohn’s first Piano Trio was so assured that it was hailed as the product of his ‘best and most beautiful hours’. It brings together his love of Romanticism and Baroque counterpoint, as well as his own gifts for expressive, song-like melody.