George Enescu: Piano Trios Nos. 1 & 2

Description

It is striking that in the extensive and significant output of George Enescu—in which symphonies, concertos, violin sonatas, quartets, and quintets are all represented—there are only two piano trios, despite the fact that the composer devoted a large part of his concert activity to performing in such an ensemble. It seems likely that his admiration for the achievements reached by the classical masters, as well as by contemporaries such as Brahms and Dvořák, inhibited him from composing in this genre.
It should also be noted that of the two trios, only the one in G minor was published and widely performed. The other, in A minor, remained unpublished and, as far as we know, unperformed until after the composer’s death in 1955, even though he had been working on it since 1916. For 39 years it was thus a victim of the uncertainties and delays that affected much of this composer’s chamber music.

In 1916, Enescu withdrew to a Romanian spa sanatorium – the country abounds in such establishments – in order to concentrate on composition. It was there that he began work on the Piano Trio in A minor. The autograph consists of thirty leaves of music, notated only approximately and left incomplete. In this sketch-like state, the work remained buried in a Bucharest archive until 1965, ten years after the composer’s death. It was then brought to light by the Romanian pianist and composer Hilda Jerea (1916–1980), who transcribed it – albeit still in an approximate form – and arranged for its concert performance in Bucharest. Thirty years later, in 1995, the Romanian composer Pascal Bentoiu (1921–2016) produced a more complete transcription of the manuscript, filling in entire piano sections left blank by the composer, and adjusting pitch and rhythmic figures as well as dynamic and tempo markings. This version was published, together with a reproduction of the autograph, by the Bucharest music publisher Grafoart, and was subsequently adopted – in each case with significant variants – for a number of performances and related recordings, including that of the Schubert Trio, with William Howard at the piano, Simon Blendis on violin and Jane Salmon on cello.

The present performance by the Trio Zefir has also contributed further additions to the text, especially including new dynamic markings.

Despite the incomplete nature of the manuscript and the substantial interventions necessary to produce a performing edition, we can still appreciate the solid formal construction of the work, which recalls the macro-structure of the first trio, written 19 years earlier, and is clearly indebted to Brahms’s piano trios, beginning with its four-movement layout.

Here there are no explicit references to any kind of folklore, and overall there is little display of virtuosity. The Trio in A minor is not a “heroic” work; it is, rather, best characterized by the expressive terms “piacevole” and “amabile” that appear in the second and third movements, and by the flowing compound duple and triple meters featured throughout.

I – Allegro moderato
The first movement reveals the clear articulations of traditional sonata form, with a fine lyrical first theme and a quieter, more serious second theme that pervades much of the development section. The shift to the major mode bestows intensity on the recapitulation and coda while preserving the song-like mood of the movement.

II – Allegretto moderato, Presto, Allegro piacevole, Tempo di siciliana lento
The second movement, as indicated by the succession of tempo markings, is constructed of different episodes with a remarkable variety of emotional moods. Although it does not assume the declared status of an autonomous slow movement, the Passacaglia nevertheless fulfils the function of one, thereby suggesting that the Trio may be understood according to a Brahmsian four-part model.

III – Andante, Vivace amabile, Animé
The final movement is organized according to a ternary scheme, in which the “amabile” Vivace stands out, with its regular triple rhythm, almost like a slow waltz. The concluding “Animé,” by contrast, is based on a binary pattern of four chords in the piano, so persistent as to suggest a drone over which the other two instruments weave a virtuosic texture. This section may also be understood as a tribute to the folk-derived sound world already explored by Enescu in several of his symphonic works, including the Romanian Suites.

The Trio in G minor bears the date 1897. It thus belongs to the early Parisian years, when Enescu was a student, among others, of Gabriel Fauré. His admiration for Brahms is strong here, as the very young Enescu had encountered him during his studies at the Vienna Conservatory in the years around 1893. This is especially evident in the first movement (Allegro vivace), where the breadth of form is constructed through a continuous variation/development of the initial rapid sequence of quavers. Cohesion is also achieved through the clear contrast between G minor and its relative major (B-flat major).
Balancing this vigorous and complex first movement is the equally expansive final movement: a Presto persistently driven by the six rapid, arpeggiated quavers in the piano.
Between the first and fourth movements, the two central movements fulfill what might be described as an “elegiac” function: the second movement is similar in style to Schumann’s Novelletten, and the third movement features a graceful repetition of a “grazioso, espressivo” motif.
With the Trio in G minor, the non-folkloric characteristics of Enescu, already noted in the Trio in A minor, become evident. It is tempting to think that the nationalist and folkloric label applied to the composer does little to convey the international dimension of a figure who was among the foremost protagonists of European music in the first half of the twentieth century, alongside Casella, Casals, Cortot, Casadesus, and many others who enriched the musical life of that generation.

This recording therefore follows in the tradition of the many piano trios that featured George Enescu as violinist (and occasionally also as pianist). A fine photograph reminds us that even in the early years of the century in Paris, the celebrated violinist – then just over twenty – formed a trio with Alfredo Casella at the piano and Louis Fournier (1877–1963) on cello. In the 1930s, the famous cellist Pierre Fournier (1906–1986) replaced him, regularly collaborating with Enescu and Casella. The three different nationalities represented in that trio further support the view that, however understandable Romania’s celebration of George Enescu may be – even to the point of renaming his birthplace, formerly Liveni, after him – it has also somewhat obscured his stature as a composer of genuinely international significance. The present recording, devoted to works still far too rarely heard in the concert hall, seeks to contribute to that recognition.
Guido Salvetti © 2026
Translation by Colleen Reardon