October 1, 2023
How savvy to begin a programme of Spanish piano trio works with Enrique Arbós’s Three Pieces, Op 1, particularly with its boisterous opening Bolero. The Heritage Piano Trio give their all, serving up liberal doses of idiomatic rubato and heel-kicking accents. Their loose and fluid way with the central Habanera’s basic pulse contrasts with the relatively straitlaced Devich Trio’s recording (Challenge Classics), while the Seguidillas finale stands out for ensemble refinement and unpressured momentum.
Joaquín Turina composed his B minor Piano Trio in the aftermath of his daughter’s death, a fact that one could read into the opening movement’s narrative arc that ranges from nostalgic delicacy to shattering lyricism. The players resist the natural temptation to sentimentalise its second theme, yet their markedly contrasted dynamics and impassioned sweep make the recorded competition sound generalised by comparison. Note, too, cellist Sergey Antonov’s almost viola-like sonority above the staff and the utter evenness of his tone control. The musicians also deliver the most supple and shimmering rendition of the Molto vivace second movement on disc.
Gaspar Cassadó is probably better known as a cellist than for his prolific compositional output. The first movement of his C major Piano Trio wanders all over the place from a thick and convoluted opening statement to a grab-bag of thematic gestures that wouldn’t be out of place in an early-1940s Hollywood romance film. Although the central movement is basically a watered-down malagueña, it showcases pianist Ilya Kazantsev’s stunningly colourful trills, as does the more musically substantial concluding movement. The three charming pieces by Mariano Perelló couldn’t be played better, or so it seems through the ensemble’s impeccably dovetailed phrasing and hair-trigger rhythmic unanimity. State-of-the-art production values and extensive booklet notes only sweeten this release’s unquestionable attraction and appeal.
—Jed Distler, Gramophone