Taking the musical waters at the Pittville Pump Room

By Mark Pullinger, 09 July 2022

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“as if they felt the music together, almost breathing as one organism”

Reviewed at Pittville Pump Room, Cheltenham on 9 July 2022

Fauré, Piano Trio in D minor, Op.120

Chen, ilk (World premiere)

Beethoven, Kakadu Variations, Op.121a

Saint-Saëns, Piano Trio no. 2 in E minor, Op.92

Gould Piano Trio

Lucy Gould, Violin

Richard Lester, Cello

Benjamin Frith, Piano

City of Light: Gould Piano Trio

Philip May, 3rd March

As part of the Philharmonia's City of Light series, the Gould Trio performed two Impressionist Piano Trios around two contrasting French Duos.

****1

Salon songs by candlelight at Corbridge Chamber Music Festival

Emily Owen, 11th August

For the second installment in Saturday evening’s Corbridge Chamber Music Festival double bill, St Andrew’s Church was bedecked with tea lights for a programme of light-hearted salon chamber music, based around Book 6 of Mendelssohn’s Songs Without Words, Op. 67.

****1

Gallic charm at the Corbridge Chamber Music Festival

Emily Owen, 11th August

Now in its 13th year, the annual Corbridge Chamber Music Festival fills St Andrew’s Church, Corbridge to its high-vaulted ceiling, with glorious music from the Gould Piano Trio (who are celebrating their 20th anniversary this year) and their varied guests.

****1

The Gould Piano Trio bring Beethoven to life

Alexandra Hamilton-Ayres, 7th December

Three is the magic number. The animated and dynamic Gould Piano Trio took to the stage and delighted the audience with three piano trios by Beethoven. The concert was the second of an exciting quartet of concerts, ‘The Beethoven Trios Series’, which are part of the Gould Piano Trio’s 20th Anniversary Year celebrations.

***11

Messiaen's ecstatic visions

Frances Wilson, 28th March

Peter Donohoe and Benjamin Frith (standing in for Peter Hill) performed Messiaen's Visions de l'Amen with intensity, clarity and profound musical understanding.

****1

OAE brings the music of C.P.E. Bach to life

Nahoko Gotoh, 3rd March

Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (1714-88), the second son of J.S. Bach, was a hugely talented composer in his own right, but his music is still rarely heard on the concert stage. In fact, it is not just his works, but the whole pre-classical repertory between Bach/Handel and Haydn/Mozart still lies largely unexplored except in recordings.

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Mark Pullinger

Mark has been a Bachtrack editor since 2014. He is also an experienced critic, writing hundreds of reviews for the site, as well as a freelancer writing for other magazines and newspapers. He also writes programme notes and blogs on Substack. Mark has a particular passion for the operas of Verdi as well as Russian and French repertoire. Outside the concert hall and opera house, Mark enjoys cooking and travel and is probably at his happiest let loose in a French patisserie or a Viennese coffee house.