Tchaikovsky Piano Trio, Op. 50

In 1880, Tchaikovsky wrote to his benefactress

"it is torture for me to have to listen to a string trio or a sonata of any kind for piano and strings"

 However, a year later Tchaikovsky had composed his first and only piano trio.

In preparation to tackle this piece when I return to Brandeis in the fall, I have been thinking about what the general ideas are in the first movement. I will use the Heifetz (violin) - Rubinstein (piano) - Piatigorsky (cello) recording.

Almost immediately the cello expresses the first theme which is then carried over to the violin. All the while the piano sets the backdrop of a foreboding scene. I picture two lovers on a ship trying to stay afloat against unrelenting currents.

At 00:31 Tchaikovsky's genius shines with a repeated motif that slightly changes on the last repeat (at 37s) to suddenly change the dialogue. Then in the subsequent passage, the piano takes over the melody and the cello provides the tumultuous backdrop and the whole dialogue repeats between the piano and violin.

At 2:00 a surprising break occurs in the music. Could it be another character? Or maybe we are listening to the internal monologue of his love for her? Whatever the case, there seems to be confusion and quick judgements being made that builds up with anger and rage that is completely taken over by the piano at 2:43.

At 2:54 emotions dissipate and the piano seems to sigh and relax into a new theme. When the other voices join, I picture a dialogue between the cello (him) and the violin (her). As if suddenly he controls his anger and rage in her presence. She eventually takes over at 3:20 and commands the stage with the support of the piano.

Finally at 3:38, we enter her mind and her recollections of their past together. The piano sets the stage by introducing her and the violin picks up her voice. I picture the cello's participation in the melody as a memory of times they shared. 4:07 transitions into violin and cello versus piano. This might suggest how (in her mind) they used to stay together against any adversity. As her thoughts die down going into 5 minutes, the theme changes yet again.


Remember that these interpretations are purely personal. Each person listening is capable of having their own vision for the music. My thoughts here barely scratch the surface of Tchaikovsky's Piano Trio. I hope you will find a little inspiration and maybe a different mindset when listening to classical music.




Sources
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piano_Trio_%28Tchaikovsky%29
http://imslp.org/wiki/Piano_Trio,_Op.50_%28Tchaikovsky,_Pyotr%29
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZG5uVC7s-4