Mozskowski and Debussy

Moritz Moszkowski: Suite for Two Violins and Piano, Op. 71
I. Allegro energico
II. Allegro moderato 
III. Lento assai 
IV. Molto vivace 

Fritz Kreisler: Liebesleid

Pablo de Sarasate: Zapateado 

Claude Debussy: Piano Trio in G major
I. Andantino con moto allegro
II. Scherzo. Intermezzo. Moderato con allegro
III Andante espressivo
IV. Finale. Appassionato

Date: April 24th, 2023
​Time: 7:30pm
Location: Steinway Piano Gallery - St. Louis
Address: 12033 Dorsett Road, Maryland Heights, MO 63043
Admission: Free

Concert Artists

Shawn Weil / Violin

Bjorn Ranheim / Cello

Erin Schreiber / Violin

Young-Whun Kim/ Piano

Ann Choomack / Flute

Moritz Moszkowski: Suite for Two Violins and Piano, Op. 71
Moritz Moszkowski was born in 1854 into a wealthy Polish-Jewish family. He showed signs of musical talent from an early age and studied piano and composition in Berlin. In 1875 he became a professor at the Berlin Conservatory. Moszkowski enjoyed a very successful career as a concert pianist and was greatly admired for performing his own compositions. Moszkowski wrote the Suite, op. 71 in 1900 during the height of his popularity. However the piece was more dramatic and serious than his usual lighthearted salon music that he was known for.

Fritz Kreisler: Liebesleid
Fritz Kreisler was born in Vienna, Austria in 1875. Showing great musical aptitude from a young age he was sent first to Vienna Conservatory and then to Paris Conservatory. He graduated from Paris Conservatory with top honors at the age of 12, performing better than his peers who were all around 20 years old!

Soon after graduation, Kreisler made his debut in the United States at the Steinway Hall in New York City in 1888. After a year of touring he tried unsuccessfully for a position with the Vienna Philharmonic. Discouraged by this turn of events Kreisler left music temporarily and went to medical school! However, he returned to concertizing in 1898 with a debut performance with the Berlin Philharmonic. Kreisler’s career as a concert violinist never faltered again. He spent many years performing between the United States and Europe, finally settling permanently in the U.S. after the outbreak of WWII. Kreisler died of a heart condition in New York City in 1962. Kreisler composed quite extensively for the violin including many encore style pieces, cadenzas, and even his own version of the first movement of Paganini’s violin concerto. Kreisler also composed the music for the 1936 movie, The King Steps Out. Liebesleid which translates to Love’s Sorrow was published in 1905 as part of a set of three pieces: Liebeslied, Liebesfreud, and Schön Rosmarin.

Pablo de Sarasate: Zapateado 
Pablo de Sarasate was born in Pamplona, Navarre of the Spanish Empire in 1844. His father was a violinist and a local artillery bandmaster. Sarasate began lessons with his father at the age of five and showed exceptional talent. After studying in Madrid for a short time his parents decided he should study at the Paris Conservatory. Sadly, his mother died of a heart attack as she was escorting her young son to Paris. When Saraste was 17 he was awarded the highest honor at the conservatory. He was the first Spanish violinist to do so. Fritz Kreisler would win this same award many years later! Saraste went on to have a very successful performance career and concertized all over Europe and North and South America.

Sarasate was a prolific composer of violin pieces and was very influential in inspiring a love of Spanish music in his contemporaries. Lalo’s Symphonie Espagnole was dedicated to Saraste as well as Saint Saens’ Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso. 

Zapateado is a work originally for solo violin and piano accompaniment, although it’s been arranged for numerous other instruments. It was originally published in 1880 as part of Sarasate's four books of Spanish dances.

Claude Debussy: Piano Trio in G major
Claude Debussy was a French composer who lived from 1862-1918. He was one of the first composers of the Impressionist era. As one of the most influential composers of all time he inspired composers such as Bela Bartok, Oliver Messian, George Benjamin, and even jazz musician Bill Evans. Debussy began musical studies at a young age at The Paris Conservatory. He won the Prix de Rome in 1884. Debussy was also greatly influenced by poetry, especially poems of the Symbolist movement of the late 19th century. Debussy’s Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun was based on a symbolist poem and his opera Pelleas et Melisande was based on symbolist play. His opera was the turning point in his career at which he would finally reach international acclaim.
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Debussy wrote the Piano Trio in G major when he was only 18 years old. At the time he was living in Fiesole, Italy with Nadezhda von Meck, a famous patroness of the musical arts. The original manuscript of the trio was lost until 1982 when it was discovered in the estate of Debussy’s student, Maurice Demesnil.