Claire Chevallier, Sergei Istomin & Martin Reimann
In memory of the great artist Rubinstein
Tchaikovsky wrote his piano trio in Rome in about 1881-1882, subtitling it In memory of a great artist, for his friend and mentor Nikolai Rubinstein who died earlier that year. The trio is in two parts and is considered one of the most difficult works that Tchaikovsky wrote for the piano. The first part has a melancholy, warm and passionate sound, incorporating the composers typical broad melodies. The second part was greatly appreciated for its breathtaking, lyrically gloomy character and sorrowful expressiveness.