MENDELSSOHN: Piano Trio in D minor; Piano Trio in c; Song without Words Op. 53 No. 2 – Trio Argenta – Bridge

MENDELSSOHN: Piano Trio in D minor, Op. 49; Piano Trio in c, Op. 66; Song without Words, Op. 53, No. 2 – Trio Argenta – Bridge 9338, 60:57 [Distr. by Albany] ****:
I didn’t know anything about the Trio Argenta; apparently they have been around since 1997, but only pianist James Winn is still a member. Cellist Dmitri Atapine and violinist Stephanie Sant’Ambrogio joined in 2009 and 2007 respectively, and from the sound of them now it was a fortuitous conjoining.
Mendelssohn’s two piano trios are staples of the literature, though curiously the simpler (and perhaps more tuneful) D-minor is by far the most popular. Both works are mature, the first written at age 30 while the second finished only two years before his death. The C-minor is by far the most important and the most profound. This amazing piece tries to sum up the many strands of Mendelsohn’s life, from the sterling scherzo to the Lutheran chorale that haunts the finale. All this in contrast to the D-minor, assertive, confident, and boldly stating a case firmly believed in.
The Trio Argenta is in residence at the University of Nevada in Reno, and they give white hot readings of each of these pieces that are easily competitive with any in the catalog. I was quite surprised at the passion emitting from my speakers, and the sound is excellent, though perhaps a little fat. I enjoyed this disc tremendously and recommend it as even a first choice in these pieces, and that says a lot.
—Steven Ritter