Klaveritrio. Aavik-Štšura-Leivategija

Tue, 22 September at 19 Pärnu Concert Hall
Wed, 23 September at 19 Jõhvi Concert Hall
Thu, 24 September at 19 Estonia Concert Hall
Sat, 26 September at 19 Vanemuine Concert Hall
Piano Trio- Aavik-Štšura- Leivategija

Hans Christian Aavik (violin)
Indrek Leivategija (cello)
Maksim Štšura (piano)

Programme:
Ravel. Piano Trio in A minor M.67
Intermission
Schubert. Piano Trio No. 2 in E-flat major D929

Three of Estonia’s leading musicians take the stage, united by a deep affinity for the music of Schubert. "This work is dedicated to none but those who find joy in it," Franz Schubert wrote to his publisher Heinrich Probst on 1 August 1828. His question regarding a dedication was natural for the time, as dedicating a piece to an influential figure could provide a composer with financial benefits and wider recognition. However, Schubert’s somewhat enigmatic reply points less to Romantic mystery and more to the emerging concert culture of 1820s Vienna.

This period saw the rise of permanent ensembles, such as the Ignaz Schuppanzigh Quartet, who performed chamber music with carefully curated programmes. These events were aimed at a sophisticated and affluent audience. Performance standards improved, composers found greater satisfaction in how their works were realised, and public taste became more discerning. Listeners were increasingly ready to engage with complex and substantial musical structures.

Schubert’s four-movement Piano Trio No. 2, with its symphonic proportions, serves as a tribute to his recently deceased idol, Beethoven. The mourning undertones of the second movement push the boundaries of artistic expression, while the work as a whole confirms Schubert’s maturity as a master of large-scale forms. It is symbolic that while composing the end of the first movement, the composer worked with such intensity that he knocked over his inkwell, leaving a large blot on the manuscript—an anecdote often highlighted by pianist Sir András Schiff.

The theme of the second movement is drawn from a genre central to Schubert’s output—the chamber song. On this occasion, he did not use his own melody but rather a Swedish folk song, "Se solen sjunker" (The sun is setting), which he heard performed by tenor Isak Berg in the salon of the Fröhlich sisters. This nostalgic music has also found a place on screen; director Stanley Kubrick used it in his 1973 film "Barry Lyndon" to depict the protagonist's moral decline in 18th-century England.

Maurice Ravel composed his only piano trio in 1914 with remarkable speed, as if sensing the impending outbreak of the First World War. Now a staple of the repertoire, the piece places great demands on the performers in terms of both technical skill and ensemble sensitivity. Each movement is built on a clear formal foundation, yet Ravel's precision and imagination elevate the music far beyond a mere formal exercise. The rhythms of the first movement are inspired by the zortzico, a dance from his mother’s native Basque Country. The second movement draws on the pantoum, a poetic form from Malaysia. The third movement evokes a Passacaglia-like variation form, while the finale suggests the outlines of a sonata. Nevertheless, it is the bold rhythmic play—influenced by Igor Stravinsky’s ballet "The Rite of Spring"—that truly captures the listener’s attention.

The programme places these two masterpieces side by side, allowing the audience to trace the evolution of the piano trio throughout the 19th century—from the aftermath of the French Revolution to the eve of the Great War. Schubert’s lyricism and Ravel’s dance-like energy meet as two distinct yet equally intense expressions of the Romantic spirit.

Duration: appr. 2 h (with intermission)