Monday, January 24, 2005
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The Cincinnati Chamber Music Society presents the Claremont Trio
By
Kendra Leonard
The Claremont Trio comes to Cincinnati at the end of January, bringing with them a breath of fresh air with their interpretations of Haydn, Mendelssohn, and Shostakovich.
The Trio, which was formed at the Julliard School in 1999, won the first ever Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson International Trio Award in 2004. This will be the group’s second Queen City appearance as part of the Cincinnati Chamber Music Society’s season. Two years ago, the Trio performed here shortly after winning the Young Concert Artists International Auditions.
Since their debut performances, the Claremont Trio has garnered praise from critics and audiences around the country. The New York Times wrote that the Trio possessed “an uncommon ferocity,” and the Washington Post agreed citing “an ardent yet sophisticated sound that embraced the audience.” The group has also wowed industry insiders, with Strings magazine commenting that “The trio is a superbly accomplished young group with much intuition among the musicians, backed by splendid training, technique and dash.”
Comprised of twin sisters Emily and Julia Bruskin and pianist Donna Kwong, the Claremont Trio has performed at 92nd Street Y, site of their New York debut; the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum: the Kennedy Center; the American Academy in Rome and in Washington, DC at the National Museum of Women in the Arts. They have toured widely, including a 2002 cultural exchange tour of Serbia, Bosnia, and Slovenia.
The young performers of the Claremont Trio, while remaining true to the standard repertoire for their makeup, are also ardent promoters of new music. In recent years they have commissioned works by a number of American composers including Daniel Kellogg, Mason Bates, and Hillary Zipper, and have plans to record these and other new works for piano trio. In addition, the group says of itself that, “[we are] also extensively involved in music education.” This commitment to working with and engaging young audiences is evident in their many informal appearances.
The Claremont Trio will be making two Cincinnati appearances. They will offer a free concert at the Mercantile Library, located at 414 Walnut Street in downtown Cincinnati, on Wednesday, February 9 at noon. The audience is encouraged to bring lunch and enjoy some noon-time music. A more formal performance will take place on Tuesday, February 8, at 7:30 p.m. in the Corbett Auditorium on the University of Cincinnati, College-Conservatory of Music campus. Either venue, prepare for an outstanding musical event.
Kendra Leonard is an arts historian based in the Cincinnati area.
