It’s a moment many performers only dream of. That backstage buzz of energy, met by the hum of audience murmurs and the anticipation of composers on the edges of their seats, waiting to hear the premiere of the pieces that began as ideas. And premiered, of all places, on the legendary stage of Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall, in the heart of New York City. Bows are rosined, pianos are tuned, scores are prepared – for many artists this might be the most unnerving moment of their careers.
For Trio Casals, this is a moment of coming home.
Trio Casals, aside from being a dynamic presence in the contemporary chamber music world, is the “house band,” so to speak, of the Navona Records series, MOTO. MOTO is a series of multi-composer albums, in which composers from all backgrounds submit scores to be considered for inclusion. When creating this series, PARMA and Trio Casals wanted to take the presentation of these works a step further, and bring them to life onstage. And what better place for a live premiere than one of the world’s most prestigious concert halls?
MOTO PERPETUO, kicking off the series, was released in 2013, followed by the equally complex and impactful MOTO CONTINUO (2015) and MOTO BELLO (2018). From beauty in motion to dances in dissonance, the Trio delivered what the individual composer was envisioning: a unique look into movement in all its various states. The fourth installment, MOTO QUARTO, releases July 12 on Navona Records, followed by its accompanying world premiere performance at Weill Hall on July 20 at 8 PM. This eclectic, daring program serves as a welcome challenge for the Trio to once again introduce the latest in contemporary chamber music to audiences of all kinds, and, as pianist Anna Kislitsyna has stated, to further build and sustain the genre. Its Carnegie premiere, like those of MOTO albums past, promises to be a powerful experience – violinist Sylvia Ahramjian describes it to be a moving feeling to be one of the ensembles in a long line of legendary artists and performances that have taken space onstage at Carnegie Hall.
In preparation for the release of MOTO QUARTO, PARMA took time to speak with Trio Casals cellist Ovidiu Marinescu, where we discussed the history, experiences, and hopes tied into the MOTO series and the performances at Carnegie Hall:
Top (left to right): Allyson B. Wells, L Peter Deutsch, Mathew Fuerst, Christopher Brakel
Bottom (left to right): David Nisbet Stewart, Emma-Ruth Richards, Keith Allan Kramer, Joanne D. Carey, Clare Shore
And what comes next for the Trio and MOTO? We just wrapped sessions this past May at Futura Productions for the fifth installment in the series, and plans are in place for the sixth album.
From the recording room to the concert hall and everywhere in between, chamber music and the composer-performer connection are alive and well.
Click here for information and tickets to the July 20th concert.
Pianist and harpsichordist Anna Kislitsyna made her solo debut at age 10 with the Omsk Symphony Orchestra. She remains in high demand as a soloist, collaborative pianist, and educator. Recent season highlights include five new album productions with PARMA Recordings and two release concerts in Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall, performing Haydn and Shostakovich Piano Concertos with Helena Symphony and Southeastern Pennsylvania Symphony Orchestra, and returning to the Omsk Philharmonic as a soloist to give the inaugural performance on the new harpsichord.
Since making a highly-praised debut at the 1996 edition of the Pablo Casals Festival in Puerto Rico, Trio Casals has delighted audiences with spectacular virtuosity, engaging enthusiasm, and exquisite musical elegance. The ensemble released several commercial albums with PARMA Recordings and Navona Records to critical acclaim with Ovidiu Marinescu and past members including Anna Kislitysyna, Alexandr Kislitsyn, and Sylvia Ahramjian, from the beloved MOTO series to A GRAND JOURNEY and more. Marinescu remains in the current ensemble line up, with Mădălina-Claudia Dănilă and Timothy Schwarz joining in 2024.
Ovidiu Marinescu is internationally recognized as a cellist, composer, conductor, and educator. He has performed at Carnegie Hall, Weill Hall, Merkin Hall (New York), the Great Hall of the Moscow Conservatory, Holywell Room in Oxford, Oriental Art Center in Shanghai, and has appeared as soloist with the London Symphony, New York Chamber Symphony, the National Radio Orchestra of Romania, Moscow Chamber Orchestra, Helena, Great Falls, Portsmouth, and Newark Symphonies, Southeastern Pennsylvania Symphony Orchestra, Cleveland Philharmonic, Limeira Symphony in Brazil, Orquesta de Extremadura in Spain, and most of the professional orchestras in his native Romania. The album LONDON CELLO CONNECTION features Marinescu and London Symphony Orchestra in eight newly commissioned cello concertos by North American composers.
