Chamber music

[pinoypianist]

Hi, I need some suggestions for some chamber music repertoire. either a Piano trio or quartet. Preferably from the Romantic or 20th century period. It's for my chamber music class. Thanks
If you want to know my level of playing, so I don't have to play overly difficult trios etc.,  my repertoire for this year is.

P & F in c# WTC 1
2 scarlatti sonatas
Pastoral Sonata - Beethoven
Paganini Etude no. 5
Etude op41 no3 - Arensky
L'isle Joyeuse
Concerto no1 - Mendelssohn

[pianowolfi]

Beethoven op. 1,3 c minor is a very rewarding piece, not too difficult and fun to play.

Ernest Bloch 3 nocturnes

Challenging (I think, I haven't played it but I'm a fan of this composer): Frank Martin Piano Trio on Popular Irish Folk Tunes

Schumann Fantasiestücke op. 88 (quite accessible)

Mendelssohn No. 1 d-minor op. 49 (challenging also, but very beautiful)

[Kassaa]

Something more obscure but very beautiful (and just perfect for around your level) is the Cesar Franck piano trio op. 1 .

[j.s. bach the 534th]

I personally like the Beethoven op. 1

[communist]

Schubert Trio in E Flat Major no.2

[indutrial]

Dig into the repertoires of Milhaud, Tansman, Bacewicz and Martinu and I'm certain you'll find some works you like. Milhaud and Martinu both wrote piano quartets that are filled with tasteful early-20th-century fashions that simultaneously don't lose sight of classical influences. All three of them wrote numerous other works like piano trios, piano quintets, and instrumental sonatas with very compelling piano parts. Milhaud's famous Suite for violin, clarinet, and piano is a fun one to work on, filled with joyful rhythms and playful interplay with the instrumentalists. Tansman's Trio no. 2 from 1941 is one of my favorite works for piano trio (far more moody and intense than Milhaud's work) and it is sorely in need of more performances. I would also recommend Tansman's two works for piano/bassoon, both of which explore many different rhythmic feels in the span of one work. Bacewicz was a virtuoso pianist and a virtuoso violinist, so she was especially ingenious at writing violin/piano duo pieces (including 5 sonatas and a partita). She also did a pair of piano quintets that are absolutely excellent (though you need a damned good string quartet). You should also look into works by Prokofiev (violin sonatas), Shostakovich (wrote two trios, a quintet), and Hindemith (wrote a sh*t-ton of instrument+piano sonatas for almost all instruments ranging from stringed instruments to unconventional choices like tuba and English horn). For even more instrumental sonatas, check out Niels Viggo Bentzon and Vagn Holmboe, two very creative Danes who composed at the rate that most people breathe. One last piano quartet worth checking out would be William Walton's.

Drop me a note if you need any other suggestions. Chamber music is my favorite area and I've spent many years studying these composers and collecting scores.

[pinoypianist]

Thanks for the suggestions.

[iumonito]

It makes no sense to me to go to the outliers of the literature if you do not have familiarity of the core repertoire, so of course, unless you have played them already, I think you should expand your list to the 18th century:

Mozart's trios in E Major and C Major are splendid and basic pillars.  The G Minor and E Flat Major Quartets even more so.

Beethoven's Archiduke and Schubert's B-flat Major trios are also basic.

Schumann's and the Brahms G Minor Quartet are simply gorgeous (Thal, you there?)

You don't have to play all that, but I think it is nonsense to explore the more obscure corners of this literature without at least having some familiarity of these middle-of-the-road works.

Then the literal answer to your question would probably include Faure quartets and trios, the Franck and Shostakovich trios, and the Brahms trios (all three of them absolute masterworks).

There is some Dvorak that is very worthwhile, and of course perhaps the best trio in the entire literature is the imposing Ravel trio, but all that stuff is pretty hard.  The Mendelssohn trio is quite hard, so i would leave it out for now.

One last note: if you have done absolutely NO chamber music before, the Haydn trios (in modern times you play them with Violin and Viola - they are for Barytone) are a very goo dplace where to start.

[pinoypianist]

It makes no sense to me to go to the outliers of the literature if you do not have familiarity of the core repertoire, so of course, unless you have played them already, I think you should expand your list to the 18th century:

Mozart's trios in E Major and C Major are splendid and basic pillars.  The G Minor and E Flat Major Quartets even more so.

Beethoven's Archiduke and Schubert's B-flat Major trios are also basic.

Schumann's and the Brahms G Minor Quartet are simply gorgeous (Thal, you there?)

You don't have to play all that, but I think it is nonsense to explore the more obscure corners of this literature without at least having some familiarity of these middle-of-the-road works.

Then the literal answer to your question would probably include Faure quartets and trios, the Franck and Shostakovich trios, and the Brahms trios (all three of them absolute masterworks).

There is some Dvorak that is very worthwhile, and of course perhaps the best trio in the entire literature is the imposing Ravel trio, but all that stuff is pretty hard.  The Mendelssohn trio is quite hard, so i would leave it out for now.

One last note: if you have done absolutely NO chamber music before, the Haydn trios (in modern times you play them with Violin and Viola - they are for Barytone) are a very goo dplace where to start.

Thanks for your reply and insights. I was asking for the Romantic/20th century period because we have just finished Classical period in our class so the teacher is requiring us to play something from the Romantic/20thC. Well, I did some Haydn, Mozart trios and we performed the "Ghost" Trio by Beethoven(which took me quite a while to play)