Reinecke’s Trio in A minor op. 188 clearly follows in the footsteps of Mendelssohn and Schumann. The work is well-proportioned and compositionally balanced. The two wind instruments are treated equally and are both technically demanding, but not highly virtuoso. Interesting instrumental combinations such as the present one are no exceptions in Reinecke’s oeuvre. Let us recall the Trio in B flat major op. 274 for clarinet, horn and piano. The reprint is based on the original Leipzig edition from Breitkopf & Härtel’s Kammermusik-Bibliothek and is a welcome addition to the repertoire of chamber music for strings.

Born in Altona, in Northern Germany, the composer Carl Reinecke played a major role in Leipzig’s musical life for half a century. He was appointed conductor of the Gewandhaus Orchestra in 1860, at the age of 36. At the same time, he was made professor of piano and composition at the Leipzig Conservatory. Among his students were Edvard Grieg and Leos Janácek. When he died on 10 March 1910, he left a voluminous and multifaceted oeuvre, whose best-known works today include the Flute Concerto in D major op. 283 and the Undine Sonata in E minor op. 167 for flute (or clarinet) and piano.

Reinecke’s chamber-music works abound in colorful scorings, such as, for example, the Trio in B flat major op. 274 for clarinet, horn and piano, which can be played alternatively with violin and viola, and the present Trio in A minor op. 188 for piano, oboe and horn, which was first published by Breitkopf & Härtel in Leipzig in December 1886. (This work was also released by the publisher in an alternative version for strings, i.e. the usual piano trio setting with violin and violoncello.)

With his A minor Trio op. 188, as in many of his other works as well, Reinecke consciously took his place among the disciples of Mendelssohn and Schumann. The layout of the work is well-proportioned. Reinecke’s compositional technique is masterfully balanced and transparent. The two solo instruments are treated with equal importance; their material is technically demanding, but not highly virtuoso. A rhythmic flow is often reached through the use of triplets. Altogether, Reinecke achieves a gentle flow over broad surfaces which, especially in the original setting, lead to a stunningly idiosyncratic sound.

The piece joins the Musica Rara collection, which devotes itself especially to chamber music for winds of the 18th and 19th centuries and also contains Reinecke’s B flat major Trio op. 274 (MR 1209). By incorporating it into this collection, the publisher hopes that Carl Reinecke’s Trio op. 188 will, with its uncommon scoring, once again enrich the repertoire of chamber music for winds.

Wiesbaden, Fall 2010