MUSIC REVIEW: Gould Piano Trio, St George’s Hall, Liverpool

Apr 24 2008 by Glyn Mon Hughes, Liverpool Daily Post

St George's Hall draped in Liverpool, European Capital of Culture 2008 banners _320

ONE of the big selling points was that they had never performed, previously, in Liverpool.

Those members of the sell-out audience who turned out to listen to the Gould Piano Trio must surely have known of their reputation.

Rarely does a quartet formed less than a decade ago list places such as the Carnegie Hall in New York and the Amsterdam Concertgebouw as places they have been, never mind venues in London, Paris, Vienna and Cologne. And here they were in Liverpool. What a coup this was for the Rodewald Concerts Society, now firmly ensconced in the Small Concert Room of St George’s Hall, though questionnaires bandied about asked people where they would like concerts to be. ‘In my front room’ was, sadly, not an option.

The highlight of this recital had to be the G minor Trio by Smetana, written after the death of his four-year-old daughter. The opening movement was a bittersweet working, where moments of massive anger contrasted with sweet repose.

But the finale? A combination of a fireworks display with a funeral march. Joy mixed with pleasure. And this trio worked it to the extreme. Pianist Benjamin Frith was particularly to be lauded since this was a demanding work – as were the others in the programme – though one must not ignore the talents of cellist Alice Neary and violinist Lucy Gould.

The concert opened with Beethoven’s C minor Piano Trio, where a furious first movement led into a quite stupendous set of variations which brought out the skills of the soloists.

A minuet of quiet questioning led to a restless performance of the finale leading to its surprisingly quiet end.

John Ireland may be remembered for some beautifully introspective miniatures but his Phantasie in A minor could easily make audiences forget his gentle side. This performance was searching and powerful.

Add to that a fizzing performance of Haydn’s C major Piano Trio and an encore of the soul-searching Elegy by Suk, then it shows that this concert hall could easily accommodate a few hundred more.

Chamber music is back in Liverpool and, as the Rodewald chairman alluded, it’s seen as the number one place in the UK to hear such music.