Piano Trio No. 1: Trio Concertante
for violin, cello, and piano (1984)
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Saint Joseph's Church, New York City
Michaela Paetsch, violin / Claudio Jaffe, cello / Jonathan Shames, piano
II. Ritornello — Romanza
III. Ritornello — Passacaglia — Ritornello
The trio is a tonal work which evolves from a three note cell: A-F#-Bb. The three instruments present this pitch group in close canons in a dramatic opening ritornello. The first movement begins without a break. It is a brisk rondo movement whose melodic material is developed in a characteristic rhythmic sequence of alternating groups of two, three, and four beats. The movement ends with a broad lyric gesture which subsides into a trill.
The cello ritornello that follows restates the opening material of the trio. The second movement (an ABA arch form) begins when the other players enter. A flowing romanza harmonized with quartal chords contrasts with a pensive central B section based on material from the ritornello.
A brittle piano ritornello begins the final movement. This is answered by a dull set of chords derived from the opening measures of the trio. The work's closing passacaglia is stated first in the piano. Repeated eleven times, the passacaglia is progressively varied by overlaying material from the previous movements. The opening ritornello returns to close the piece.
Awarded the Bearns Prize for Chamber Music of Columbia University in 1985, Trio Concertante was commissioned by the International Chamber Artists Series, Sara Lambert Bloom, Director, and premiered by the Paetsch-Shames-Jaffe Trio at St. Joseph's Church in Greenwhich Village on the Perpetuum Mobile Concert Series on 4 December 1985.