Australian Music Centre | Breaking sound barriers

Event Details

In this program, we explore three striking works for Piano Trio from across the musical spectrum. Louise Farrenc is one of the few female voices we have from the 19th Century, though her work is little known. A formidable intellect and central force in Paris, her work was recognised as first rate by savants and connoisseurs of the time but sadly did not win her lasting fame. We're very pleased to discover this gem of a trio that won her acclaim from her contemporary Hector Berlioz. Stuart Greenbaum’s Book of Departures was conceived in three chapters, which circle through a range of emotions, from triumphant, to nostalgic, to optimistic. Greenbaum considers minimalism, Jazz and Pop amongst his musical influences, and his works never fail to move and engage us. Maurice Ravel had been mulling over his ideas for a Piano Trio for years but it was the outbreak of World War I, and the knowledge that he would have to depart to the front, that spurred him on to finally complete the project. Ravel’s influences in writing the trio were various, including Basque dance (a heritage he felt great affinity with) and Malaysian poetry, to name two - and the result is a work sparkling with vitality and vigour, which, some hundred years after its composition, never fails to sound fresh and new.

Louise Farrenc | Piano Trio No. 1 in E Flat
Stuart Greenbaum | Book of Departures
Maurice Ravel | Piano Trio

Featured non-Australian music: Ravel, Farrenc

Further information for this event is available online at the event's website or by phone on 0405 498 459

Featured Australian Works

Featured artists

• Performer Strelitzia Ensemble