Black Oak Ensemble – Avant l’orage: French String Trios, 1926–1939 (2022) [Official Digital Download 24bit/96kHz]

Black Oak Ensemble - Avant l'orage: French String Trios, 1926–1939 (2022) [Official Digital Download 24bit/96kHz] Download

Black Oak Ensemble, the Chicago-based string trio with an international following, treats listeners to a double-album of stylish and often witty French treasures written between the World Wars.

The ensemble offers seven rarely heard delicacies from the 1920s and 30s, including world premiere recordings of trios by Henri Tomasi, Robert Casadesus, and Gustave Samazeuilh along with works by Jean Cras, Emile Goué, Jean Françaix, and Gabriel Pierné. Most were written for and dedicated to the virtuosic Trio Pasquier, which ranked among the era’s chamber music superstars.

Tomasi’s Mediterranean roots are heard in the Provençal folk melody referenced in his Trio à cordes en forme de divertissement, noted for its colorful, kaleidoscopic finale. Casadesus’s Trio à cordes combines fine craftsmanship and poetic sincerity. Samazeuilh, a disciple of Claude Debussy, wrote his Suite en trio in the form of a Baroque dance suite.

Celtic-infused folk music of his native Brittany emerges in Cras’s Trio pour violon, alto et violoncelle, as does an homage to Beethoven’s Op. 132 string quartet. Goué wrote his Trio pour violon, alto et violoncelle, energized with folk-dance elements, on the eve of his World War II army deployment. Françaix’s Trio displays his trademark textural clarity, agility, and sense of humor. Pierné’s Trois pièces en trio has even more fun with the listener with its satirical finale conjuring intoxicated, stumbling “fat cats” (actually an ironic reference to clerics/priests) out on the town.

Tracklist:

01. Black Oak Ensemble – Tomasi: Trio à cordes en forme de divertissement: I. Prélude (02:16)
02. Black Oak Ensemble – Tomasi: Trio à cordes en forme de divertissement: II. Nocturne (04:46)
03. Black Oak Ensemble – Tomasi: Trio à cordes en forme de divertissement: III. Scherzo (05:53)
04. Black Oak Ensemble – Tomasi: Trio à cordes en forme de divertissement: IV. Final (05:11)
05. Black Oak Ensemble – Cras: Trio for Violin, Viola & Cello: I. — (07:37)
06. Black Oak Ensemble – Cras: Trio for Violin, Viola & Cello: II. Lent (06:54)
07. Black Oak Ensemble – Cras: Trio for Violin, Viola & Cello: III. Animé (04:22)
08. Black Oak Ensemble – Cras: Trio for Violin, Viola & Cello: IV. Très animé (05:12)
09. Black Oak Ensemble – Goué: Trio for Violin, Viola & Cello: I. Presto (03:28)
10. Black Oak Ensemble – Goué: Trio for Violin, Viola & Cello: II. Adagio (06:30)
11. Black Oak Ensemble – Goué: Trio for Violin, Viola & Cello: III. Final en forme de tarantelle (04:38)
12. Black Oak Ensemble – Françaix: Trio à cordes: I. Allegretto vivo (01:58)
13. Black Oak Ensemble – Françaix: Trio à cordes: II. Scherzo (03:15)
14. Black Oak Ensemble – Françaix: Trio à cordes: III. Andante (03:46)
15. Black Oak Ensemble – Françaix: Trio à cordes: IV. Rondo (03:39)
16. Black Oak Ensemble – Casadesus: Trio à cordes: I. Allegro con brio (04:33)
17. Black Oak Ensemble – Casadesus: Trio à cordes: II. Légende (06:46)
18. Black Oak Ensemble – Casadesus: Trio à cordes: III. Allegro aperto (04:29)
19. Black Oak Ensemble – Samazeuilh: Suite en trio for Violin, Viola & Cello: I. Prélude (03:40)
20. Black Oak Ensemble – Samazeuilh: Suite en trio for Violin, Viola & Cello: II. Française (03:59)
21. Black Oak Ensemble – Samazeuilh: Suite en trio for Violin, Viola & Cello: III. Sarabande (04:50)
22. Black Oak Ensemble – Samazeuilh: Suite en trio for Violin, Viola & Cello: IV. Divertissement (02:34)
23. Black Oak Ensemble – Samazeuilh: Suite en trio for Violin, Viola & Cello: V. Musette (02:24)
24. Black Oak Ensemble – Samazeuilh: Suite en trio for Violin, Viola & Cello: VI. Forlane (03:33)
25. Black Oak Ensemble – Pierné: 3 Pièces en trio: No. 1, Modéré, sans lenteur (09:06)
26. Black Oak Ensemble – Pierné: 3 Pièces en trio: No. 2, Chanson (06:29)
27. Black Oak Ensemble – Pierné: 3 Pièces en trio: No. 3, Les trois clercqs de Sainct-Nicholas (05:26)