for violin, cello and piano

• To listen to the composition click on the individual movement below

1. Movement I
2. Movement II
3. Movement III

• Contact terry@vosbein.com for performance materials

• To download the score click here
• To download the violin part click here
• To download the cello part click here

The genesis of Trio No. 2 for Violin, Cello and Piano dates back to my graduate school years. While attending the Cleveland Institute of Music, I composed a cello sonata for two of my close friends, Jesus Morales and David Riley. It was such a thrill to hear them play my music that when violinist Jasper Wood joined, creating Los Tres Musicos, I happily composed a trio for them. They went on to perform my Trio No. 1 in Cleveland, Ohio, and in Lexington, Virginia, as well as in a live performance on Buffalo Public Radio.

When Los Tres Musicos, whose name was borrowed from the Picasso painting, was selected for a residency at the Banff Centre in Albert, Canada, they asked me to compose a second trio for them. Amidst the hecticness of a busy teaching schedule I managed to complete the score and have it in the trio’s hands in time for rehearsals to begin.

Having not heard the work, I drove and camped my way across the Trans Canada Highway, arriving at Banff the day before the premiere. I knew from past experience that my composition was in good hands, and when I attended my first rehearsal the trio did not let me down. They played with the virtuosity and vigor that I had come to expect.

The first movement is a rondo. The adagio movement is a fugue of sorts, with the strings providing the counterpoint while the piano makes rhapsodic interjections. All three instruments are swept into the rhapsody before concluding in a fugal manner. The final movement, a scherzo, is based entirely on the two melodies heard simultaneously in the first few measures.

As is often my custom, I spoke briefly to the audience prior to the premiere. Among my extemporaneous remarks, I said “In music appreciation classes they often tell us that music is divided into what is called programmatic music, music that tells a story, such as ‘Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun’ or ‘The Rite of Spring,’ and absolute music, music with titles such as ‘Symphony No. 1’ or 'Divertimento.' They usually tell you that this is music that does not have a story. Well, what I have to tell you is that my Piano Trio No. 2 is what they would call absolute music; but I don’t think it means that it is without a story. I think it means that you can create your own story as you hear it.”