The Esslan Piano Trio

louth | arts and media | news report

Sunday April 03, 2005 21:12

by Sean Crudden

sean_crudden at hotmail dot com

Jenkinstown, Dundalk, Co Louth.

+353 (0) 87 9739945

Youthful and Entertaining Performance

Carlingford Lough Heritage Trust presented a recital by The Esslan Piano Trio in Holy Trinity Heritage Centre, Carlingford, starting at 4.00 p.m. on Sunday 3 April 2005.

L to R. Katrina, Gina Maria and Eoin pictured after the recital.

The members of The Esslan Trio are Gina Maria McGuinness (violin), Eoin Quinlan (cello) and Katrina McGuinness (piano).

The program was:-

Mozart: Trio in B flat major - K 502

Beethoven: Trio WoO. 39 in B flat major

Interval

Dvorak: Trio in E minor Op. 90 "Dumky"

The performing group was very ably led by Gina Maria who is a consummate musical actor and her musical personality is very attractive. Eoin Quinlan knocked a generous yet tidy sound from his cello on all registers. Katrina tended to be a background figure and although she was physically less demonstrative she produced a bright, progressive sound and certainly showed no deficiencies in musical prowess.

The Mozart at the start made a major impression on me. The players maintained the pulse of the music throughout and they listened very attentively to one another playing all three of them like accomplished accompanists.

The nature of the program meant that Eoin had more work to do after the Mozart while Gina Maria probably had a little less. Though there is only one movement in the Beethoven the group, while maintaining their own distinctive personal approach, caught the character of the music very well and it fell very easily on the ear.

The Dvorak in the second half was presented in good frictionless, free-flowing style and all the many points and cadences in the music were caught effectively.

The music was entertaining because the idiom was right and the mood of the players spot-on. Some of the "starts" and "finishes" in the music especially where two players were involved were accomplished with very pleasant style.