Perfect piano key to trio's performance

How often does a musician select a venue to perform in because of the quality of instruments? Probably more than the public realizes.

When Edmonton pianist Bianca Baciu was searching for a venue in which to perform a chamber concert with cellist Josephine van Lier and violinist Jennifer Bustin, she made a beeline straight for Don’s Piano Warehouse.

This St. Albert retailer stocks a Petrof, a grand piano from the internationally renowned Czech piano maker. Baciu describes the touch and tone, “It has such a warm, but at the same time big, symphonic sound. Plus it feels like velvet under my hands.”

That was the lock that sealed the deal for the three chamber musicians performing in concert tonight at Don’s Piano Warehouse recital hall.

Bustin and van Lier have performed together for the past 16 years on numerous occasions. “We’re able to pick up on each other’s cues. We just need to raise an eyebrow and the other knows what we mean,” Bustin explains.

Baciu joined the trio after Bustin and the Romanian musician met last fall as judges for an Edmonton Youth Orchestra competition. “There’s an easy chemistry between us. Rehearsals are fun and they feel easy. It’s not always that way.

The all-woman virtuosi perform three works: Dimitri Shostakovich’s Piano Trio in e minor, Opus 67, Johannes Brahms’ Violin Sonata in d minor, Opus 108 and Edward Elgar’s Salut d’amour.

The big showpiece is Shostakovich’s 20-minute emotional composition. “It’s filled with Shostakovich’s angst over the Stalinist rule. It’s very eerie and menacing. It pushes the listener to the edge. It’s different but completely enrapturing.”

Elgar’s Salut d’amour instead was a romantic work the composer presented as an engagement gift to his wife. Originally titled Liebes grus, it was initially poorly received. Poverty forced Elgar to sell the work to his publisher for two guineas. The publisher repackaged the song with a French name and it developed a huge following. Unfortunately Elgar never received another penny for it.

And finally Brahms’ violin sonata is a four-movement showpiece that gives musicians a real workout. “It’s a powerhouse. It’s very intense and emotional with beautiful soaring melodies — quite the 19th century Romantic piece. It has so much freedom, but it really is virtuosic.”

As Bustin concludes, “This is awesome music. That’s the bottom line.”