Search - Claremont Trio, Ludwig van Beethoven, Maurice Ravel :: Beethoven & Ravel

Widely regarded as the premier piano trio of its generation, the Claremont Trio's latest recording pairs masterworks by Beethoven & Ravel. Hailed as a group to watch by the Los Angeles Times, twin sisters Emily Bruskin (violin) and Julia Bruskin (cello) with Donna Kwong (piano) form the Trio which has been lauded since their creation, leading Strad Magazine to declare The Claremont Trio is on the fast track to success. Early acclaim for Beethoven & Ravel includes ConcertoNet's rave: The Claremont Trio is the way classical music should be played: soulful, passionate, yielding, discerning, evocative and informative. It is no wonder this talented threesome is paving a new avenue of brilliance and innovation for the new millennium. The Claremont Trio s latest recording includes Beethoven s Trio in C Minor, Op. 1, No.3, and Ravel s Trio for Piano, Violin, and Cello. Produced and engineered by Grammy Award-winner Adam Abeshouse, the new album stands as a reminder of the Trio s history together, as the group performed both works at their very first performance more than ten years ago at The Juilliard School. In fact the Ravel Trio was the first piece they studied together since they ve always loved its enchanting sonorities and exotic rhythms. Julia nostalgically recalls: In the decade that we ve played together, it s been a privilege to live and grow with both of these works, to feel our interpretations marinate and develop. This recording is not an ending but a snapshot along the course of a journey with these pieces that as a trio we hope to continue for many years to come. First winners of the Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson International Trio Award and the only piano trio ever to win the Young Concert Artists International Auditions (whose 50th anniversary they will help celebrate at NYC s Symphony Space in February, 2011), the Claremont Trio has enjoyed return engagements across the country in venues ranging from Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center, to (Le) Poisson Rouge and Bargemusic, as well as festivals including Ravinia, Saratoga and Wolf Trap. As artists who are equally passionate about the standard repertoire and the music of our time, the Claremonts are deeply committed to expanding the trio repertoire. They are actively working with composers on new works including pieces by Gabriela Lena Frank, Sean Shepherd, and Helen Grime, that they will premiere next year. The trio has also commissioned works from Nico Muhly, Donald Crockett, Daniel Kellogg, Mason Bates, Howard Frazin, and Hillary Zipper, and has an ongoing collaboration with innovative composer and violinist Daniel Bernard Roumain. Previous recordings on Tria Records include American Trios and Shostakovich and Arensky Trios, and the Claremonts have also recorded the Mendelssohn Trios Op. 49 & 66 for Arabesque Records and works by Beethoven, Brahms, and Dohnanyi for Ongaku Records . The Claremont Trio has been featured on Japanese and American television and is heard on radio stations throughout the U.S. and abroad, including WQXR, WGBH, WFMT, KBYU, and many more. Since 2006, they have kept a blog on their website which describes their adventures -- musical and otherwise -- on the road.