Trio for piano, violin and cello

Composed during the last months of the Great War and dedicated to the composer Pierre de Bréville – at the time professor of chamber music at the Paris Conservatory -, Guy Ropartz’s Trio for piano, violin, and cello was published by Durant in 1919 and then first performed at the Société nationale de musique on February 14^th, 1920. Choosing a classical structure in four movements, the composer distills a certain modernity in his piece by working on the melody, that borrows a number of elements from the whole tone scale, and makes forays - notably in the opening of the third movement – beyond the established tonal limits. A conscientious pupil of César Franck, Ropartz offers a piece that follows the cyclical principle: the themes of the first movement run throughout the trio. It is above all a to-and-fro motion, first introduced by the strings, that rocks this work recalling the maritime moods dear to its author. While Europe was beginning to heal its wounds and mourn its many missing, the piece also offers a certain flight beyond time, drawing out the melodies to the utmost, similarly to the first theme, exposed by the cello, that runs over 17 measures. This approach however does not prevent it from conveying intense emotion as well as displaying in the Scherzoa dazzling buoyancy.