Trio No. 2 for violin, cello and piano Op.77 (2001) c.16'00"

in one movement

Commissioned by the Lied Center for the Performing Arts

First Performed on November 4th, 2001 at the Lied Center for the performing Arts in Lawrence, Kansas by the Perlman/Nikannen/Bailey Trio

ABOUT

My Piano Trio No. 2 Op. 77 was commissioned by a consortium that included the Lied Center of Kansas, the Singletary Center in Lawrence Kentucky, and the California Center for the Arts in Escondido. It was written for the Perlman/Nikkanen/Bailey Trio, who gave the work its world premiere at the Lied Center on Nov. 4th, 2001.

The work is in three clearly defined sections that are to be played without a pause.  The first section, marked “molto ritmico,” presents an aggressive quintuplet ostinato in the piano with an octave melody in the strings that is comprised of triplet, quintuplet and dotted rhythms.  It is in the juxtaposition of these rhythmic cells that the argument of the first section takes place.  The second section, marked “Adagio,” begins with a chorale-like, chordal figure in the piano that alternates with an eerie, chant-like figure in the strings.  This builds to an impassioned lyric section.  The last section of the trio, marked “allegro,” presents a virtuoso rendering of materials from the previous sections.  In terms of harmonic materials, the trio freely blends tonal, modal, octatonic and atonal elements. 

RECORDINGS

click on thumbnail to order

REVIEWS

“No such divergence of viewpoints was heard in the Liebermann, a particularly laudable choice. Beaux Arts had no hand in commissioning it; the trio appears to schedule the new piece, written in 2001, purely out of musical merit. Liebermann’s usual ingratiating qualities are present, but arrive hard won in the wake of considerable angst. The music is full of questions without answers, posed in ways that allow all three instruments to have extended solo moments. In effect, the composer all but wrote a series of solo sonatas, each wrought with extraordinary love and sympathy for the instruments.”
The Philadelphia Inquirer

“Again we were impressed by Liebermann’s effective writing for instrumental ensemble. This work gneratesconsiderable rhythmic interest, yet always has expressive values pleasing to the ear, mind and emotions. There was a lovely section where violin and cello played sotto voce, expressionless and without vibrato in a dialog against the piano that created a wonderful magical moment…It was an impressive piece…”
Peninsula Reviews

“…written in 2001 with the richness so characteristic of the composer. Operning with terse, repeated figures for the violin and cello, filled out with marchlike block chords from the piano, the score offered a majestic quality the Beaux Arts Trio embraced with zeal.”
Louisville Scene

”Lowell Liebermann’s Trio No.2 Op.77, has already been labeled by some as “the first great work of the millenium." “…it is a work that instantly captivates.”
Classical Voice North Carolina

”The trio’s subsequent evenings with the piece will certainly help it settle in as some of the best music in the early 21st century.”
Lincoln Journal Star