Presents
Vasily Barvinsky
Piano Trio in a minor
First Time Available in the West
We are pleased to present the Piano Trio in a minor by the Ukrainian composer Vasily (Vasyl) Barvinsky (1888-1963) He was born in the Ukrainian city of Ternopil (then known as Tarnopol and part of the Austrian-Habsburg Empire). He studied piano, and composition at the Lyiv Conservatory and afterward in Prague with Vizeslav Novak. He pursued a career as a composer and teacher, eventually becoming a professor at the Lyiv Conservatory. His music, occasionally shows the influence of Impressionism, but often relies on Ukrainian folk melodies. Minimalism also attracted him. He was not a prolific composer and chamber music is not a large part of his oeuvre.
Barvinsky's Piano Trio in a minor was composed in 1910 but was not published during his lifetime. It is in three movements and the themes in all of the movements are related. The opening begins with an Andante sentimental introduction which leads to the main section, Allegro energico. There are several slower, more lyrical episodes which interrupt the proceedings and there are constant tempo changes. The highly romantic middle movement, Andante, might well have been the kind of song without words Mendelssohn would have written had he been alive in 1910. The finale is marked Allegro giocoso and subtitled alla kolomyika (usually transliterated as Kolomeyko) A Kolomeyko is a traditional Ukrainian round dance. It starts off slowly but quickly accelerates and grows in excitement. Full of upbeat, forward motion, one can well imagine Ukrainian peasants dancing at a rustic festival.
This is an appealing work which certainly deserves concert performance and can also be recommended to experienced amateur ensembles. The parts were edited by senior editors Garik Hayrapetyan and Raymond Silvertrust. We wish to thank Stefan Hlouschko who made a copy of the score available to us.
Parts: $34.95
