Hermitage Piano Trio

Recordings

Spanish Impressions

Spanish Impressions

Hermitage Piano Trio: Rachmaninoff SACD Album Artwork

Hermitage Piano Trio: Rachmaninoff

Descending from the great Russian musical tradition, the Hermitage Piano Trio is distinguished by its exuberant musicality, interpretative range, and sumptuous sound. In the same way that St. Petersburg’s venerable Hermitage State Museum both represents the very essence and history of Russia while also using its collection to embrace and promote cultures from around the world, the Hermitage Piano Trio embodies the majesty of its Russian lineage while at the same time including in its immense repertoire works from the great European tradition to contemporary American commissions. Following a recent performance, The Washington Post raved that “three of Russia’s most spectacular young soloists… turned in a performance of such power and sweeping passion that it left you nearly out of breath.”

Based in the United States, the Trio has performed to similarly tremendous acclaim for audiences on major chamber music series in Los Angeles, New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., Tucson, Newport (RI), Portland (OR), San Miguel de Allende (Mexico), and New Orleans. The group’s 2018-19 season features performances all over North America, including those at Portland (OR) Friends of Chamber Music, Art Power! At UC San Diego, and the Corpus Christi Chamber Music Society. Recently signed to a multiple-album recording deal with Reference Recordings, the Trio’s debut CD – released in May 2019 – is comprised of the piano trios of Sergey Rachmaninoff: Trio élégiaque No. 1 in G minor; Trio élégiaque No. 2 in D minor, Op. 9; and Vocalise.

A hallmark of the Trio is its polished skill in performing an enormous variety of music, and its wide, well-thought-out repertoire ranges from Rachmaninoff, Shostakovich, Arensky, Glinka, and Tchaikovsky to Schubert, Beethoven, Mendelssohn, Dvorak, and Brahms – the source of many of their invitations to return.

Hermitage Piano Trio Reviews:

“the Hermitage Trio… sound Russian and romantic; they have ardor, but they are not pushy about it. This is best recording I have heard of Trio 1—and that goes for the sound as well. Trio 2 is similar. … the Hermitage wants to burst forth with passion, to let the whole world know!” —Donald Vroon, American Record Guide (2019 ARG Critic’s Choice)

“It was my privilege to attend a day-long recording session for this Rachmaninoff program at Mechanics Hall in Worchester, Massachusetts. (See “Magic at Mechanics” in Issue 279.) Given the artists, repertoire, venue, and production team, I expected a good result. But I couldn’t have predicted what Reference has delivered with the final product. … The performances…are as intensely satisfying as a concert hall experience. … in multichannel especially, this album is among the most convincingly realistic recordings I’ve ever heard. Not to be missed.” —Andrew Quint, The Absolute Sound

“The Hermitage Piano Trio prove another strong contender within a catalogue of riches. The ensemble brings a darker, more brooding vantage point to the 19-year-old composer’s one-movement G minor Trio, tastefully stretching out phrases…while favouring relatively massive sonorities. … Thoroughly detailed annotations and ravishingly balanced surround-sound engineering lend further distinction to this release.” —Jed Distler, Gramophone