Britain's world-renowned Floristan Piano Trio aims to prove that three times really is a charm, when they return to Memorial Chapel Sunday, Oct. 22, at 7 p.m. for their third appearance as part of Union's acclaimed Chamber Concert Series.
In 2000 the ensemble, comprised of Susan Tomes on piano, Anthony Marwood on violin and Richard Lester on cello, received Britain's Royal Philharmonic Society Award for chamber music-marking the first time the prize was given to a piano trio. Their first major tour of the U.S., in March 2004, included a debut at Carnegie Hall and all three members of the trio were taught by violinist Sandor Vegh who epitomized the approach of expressing every detail of a piece of music and their first major tour of the U.S.
Florestan's recordings have received outstanding reviews in the European tradition of chamber music playing, with their discs garnering critical acclaim and coveted honors including the prestigious Gramophone Awards-oft perceived as the Oscars of the classical music world.
Their recording of Schubert's B flat Trio was described by The Times of London as “marvelously alive, played with palpable joy and an unerring sense of ensemble.”
Tomes, recognized as one of the finest pianists and chamber musicians of her generation, has recorded more than 40 CDs of solo, duo and chamber music which have won international awards including three Gramophone Awards, the 1999 Classic CD Award, several Diapasons d'Or in France and several Deutsche Schallplattenpreise.
In May 2006, Marwood was named Instrumentalist of the Year at the prestigious Royal Philharmonic Society Awards, the first string player to receive this honor in more than a decade. Lester, who is equally at home in period instrument performance and in ‘modern' performance, divides his time between the Florestan Trio and as principal cellist with the Chamber Orchestra of Europe and the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment.
The group will perform Mozart's K. 496 in G; Saint-Saens' No.2 in e, Op. 92; and Schubert's D. 898 in B flat (Op. 99).
Concert tickets are free for the Union community, $25 for the general public and $12 for area students. They may be picked up at Facilities. For more information, call 388-6080 or 372-3651; or visit www.union.edu/concertseries.