La Cafamore is bringing “In Beethoven’s Shadow” featuring works of the great master and those who were influenced by him, to downtown Trail on Sunday (Sept. 8).
“Trail is usually the last stop of our tour and our home base” says Cameron, mentioning the trio also stopped in Kimberley, Fernie and Invermere.
“The Trail United Church has some of the best acoustics in the Kootenays so we always look forward to this concert. And it’s always nice to have the support of the home crowd.”
As far as the performance title, La Cafamore points out the musical influence of Ludwig van Beethoven is so massive that virtually any composer after his time would be in the shadow of his greatness.
“Any composer, and most classical musicians ... in fact, every member of this group can trace themselves back to Beethoven through their piano teachers," says violinist Carolyn Cameron.
She says this includes Angela Snyder, who will be on viola this concert, but also excels in violin and piano, and pianist Hendrik Mendes.
“It is a favourite pastime of piano pedagogues to link themselves to Beethoven through their piano teachers, as he was not only a performer and composer, but also a prolific teacher," Cameron continues.
Even Beethoven sought the guidance of his day’s greatest musicians, moving to Vienna to study with Mozart.
Beethoven’s “Archduke trio” proved to be a bittersweet event in his life, as the performance of this piece was his last as a pianist.
His deafness had gotten to a point where it became near impossible to do any ensemble work.
Originally written for violin, piano and cello, La Cafamore will delegate the cello part of the “Archduke” to viola.
Cameron says this is not an uncommon practice for groups where a cellist is not available.
The viola, she explains, lends itself to the part as many piano trios take advantage of the cello’s upper range, which fits nicely into the viola range.
They'll also be performing "Trio #4," a piece written specifically for piano, violin and viola by German composer Ignaz Lachner.
"Why he chose the viola over the standard cello part is anyone’s guess," Cameron adds. "But thank goodness he did as his works for this combination are some of the best in the classical music repertoire."
Lachner was one of three composer brothers and a virtuoso violinist.
He was heavily influenced by Schubert who was a contemporary, and also by Beethoven who died when Lachner was 20.
Rounding out the program will be an excerpt from the work “Suite en Trio” by Mel Bonis, a female French composer.
“You may ask how a female French composer would be in Beethoven’s shadow, to which I would say the same way that a Canadian classical musician living in the Kootenays is in his shadow," Cameron laughs.
"It is a huge shadow, okay?”
Written originally for violin, flute and piano, “Suite en Trio” will be adapted for La Cafamore’s configuration.
“There are so many great works by women composers and I feel that they do not have the exposure that they deserve” says Cameron.
Bonis certainly experienced sexism and judgment of her work based on her gender, Cameron explains.
"So much so that she signed her work 'Mel' to avoid the prejudice that her given name Melanie would bring."
The Sunday, Sept. 8, concert starts at 2 p.m. in the Trail United Church.
Tickets are $20 each, children 12 and under are free.
Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 1770 – 26 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. He is one of the most revered figures in the history of Western music; his works rank among the most performed of the classical music repertoire and span the transition from the Classical period to the Romantic era in classical music.
