Cécile Chaminade (1857-1944)
Piano Trio No. 1 in G minor, op. 11 (1881)
Three Morceaux for Violin and Piano, op. 31 (1885)
Piano Trio No. 2 in A minor, op. 34 (1887)
Tatiana Larionova (piano)
Sara Pastine (violin)
Martina Biondi (cello)
rec. 2024, DV Studios, Crema, Italy
Da Vinci Classics C01140 [63]

Cécile Chaminade was a prolific composer of piano pieces and songs, intended for popular entertainment, and that has somewhat downgraded her reputation, some commenting unkindly and unfairly that her music was only fit for the salon. However, she could be a “serious” Romantic composer when she wanted to: these two piano trios are strong evidence of that, undoubtedly influenced by Mendelssohn and Schumann, but with an unmistakable French accent.

Perhaps because of her experience in writing miniatures, she knew the dangers of overextending her material. None of the two trio’s movements is more than ten minutes, and the listener’s attention is held throughout. The first is very much in the Schumann mould, the finale so clearly influenced by his Piano Quintet, but well short of its genius level creation. While there are only six years between the two trios, the second shows a considerable development of her own voice. In my Piano Trio survey, I commented that one should start the Chaminade trios by listening to the slow movement of Trio No. 2, which I described as “breathtakingly beautiful”. Indeed, my belief is that the second trio is one of the best written by someone outside the group of big-name composers.

The Morceaux that accompany the trios on this new recording are certainly from the lighter end of her output, but have been well chosen because they have some “guts” to them; the third is a real virtuoso showpiece, while the first two, reflective in nature, have some lovely melodies.

It surprises me that this is only the fourth album to include both trios. The first, by the Tzigane Trio (ASV), is the best of the other three, but is no longer available. Unfortunately, I don’t believe the other two, Trio Parnassus (MDG – review) and an ensemble led by Ann-Sofi Klingberg on dB Productions, are competitive. This release solves any intending purchaser’s dilemma, as the performances here by the three players, none household names, are uniformly excellent. I was particularly impressed by violinist Sara Pastine, simply because at no time did her tone descend into the harsh, whiny sound that many violinists produce under pressure. Comparison of the timings between this recording and the ASV one shows a quite remarkable similarity: across the seven movements, the biggest difference is eighteen seconds. That said, the new recording certainly has better sound quality, and the performances, despite the similarity in timings, seem to have more life. The version of the second trio by Trio Chausson (Mirare) still remains the best on offer, but Larionova and colleagues run them close.

Recently, I reviewed another Da Vinci Classics release recorded in the same studio, and was critical of the sound. This time it is much better; there is good clarity and warmth, and the instrumental separation is natural. The wordiness of the booklet notes gets in the road of the information; a quote by way of example: “Chaminade is neither an epigone nor a forerunner by programme: she belongs to a French lineage that has made clarity and economy an ethic before it is an aesthetic”. Perhaps this may be partly a matter of translation.

Chaminade’s two trios should be far better known, and this recording is a perfect way to rectify that.

David Barker

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