Mendelssohn: Piano Trios, Opp. 49 & 66

Listen on Soundcloud

Description

Nearly an entire decade lies between the first mention (1831) and the printing (1840) of the Trio, Op. 49. Mendelssohn kept trying to set it to paper, but he was probably again making too many demands on this work, his first in the piano trio genre. Yet his efforts were immediately rewarded: "It is the master trio of the present," and Mendelssohn "the Mozart of the 19th century," proclaimed Robert Schumann, who was also to compose a landmark in D Minor Trio seven years later. Mendelssohn's second Trio, Op. 66 was composed with a relatively light hand in 1845. Over and beyond the familiar Trios opp. 49 and 66, the corresponding volume of the "Leipziger Mendelssohn-Ausgabe" contains sketches and drafts in the same scoring, which were not further developed.

Pieces

• Piano Trio No. 1 in D Minor, MWV Q 29, Op. 49
• Piano Trio No. 2 in C Minor, MWV Q 33, Op. 66