ROPARTZ - RHENÉ-BATON • Trios avec piano
Trio Hochelaga
Stéphane Lemelin (piano)
Paul Marleyn (cello)
Anne Robert (violin)
This is the third recording in a critically-acclaimed series entitled Découvertes 1890-1939, which explores works by little-known French composers. The featured artists are pianist Stéphane Lemelin and his colleagues, violinist Anne Robert and cellist Paul Marleyn, who together form the Trio Hochelaga. They perform trios with piano by two leading lights of the French musical establishment at the beginning of the 20th century : Joseph Guy Ropartz, a lawyer who eventually gave in to his passion for music to become a full-time musician and composer; and René Emmanuel Bâton, an orchestral conductor whose appearances included an engagement with Serge Diaghilev’s Ballet russes in 1912. Many of his works are clearly inspired by his love for Brittany and Breton culture.
Joseph Guy Marie Ropartz
Trio en la mineur pour violon, violoncelle et piano (1918)
I Modérément animé
13:52
II Vif
6:02
III Lent - Animé
16:59
René Emmanuel Bâton
Trio pour piano, violone et violoncelle, op.31 (1923)
I Lento – Allegro - Andantino
10:03
II Divertissement sur un vieil air breton (Allegro giocoso)
4:14
III Andante poco mosso - Allegro vivace - Plus calme - Tempo primo
9:16
Trio Hochelaga
Founded in 2000, Trio Hochelaga has quickly established itself as one of Canada’s most exciting chamber music ensembles. Together, violinist Anne Robert, cellist Benoît Loiselle, and pianist Stéphane Lemelin share their pas-sion for a repertoire that ranges from the Classical period to the present. Their repertoire not only includes the great works of the trio literature, but also makes a special place for French music, whose neglected treasures they enthusiastically explore. Bearing the original Iroquois name of the city of Montreal, Trio Hochelaga has from its inception been invited to participate in the principal music fes-tivals of Eastern Canada, including the Festival international de Lanaudière, the Ottawa Chamber Music Festival, and the Orford Arts Centre Festival. In 2003, Trio Hochelaga gave the premiere performance of Jacques Hétu’s Triple Concerto with the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal at the Lanaudière Festival. The ensemble’s first CD release, a recording of the two trios of Anton Arensky, was received by the press with high praise.
