Fujita Piano Trio, Kendal Town Hall

KENDAL Midday Concert Club’s 72nd season opened in auspicious fashion with a recital given by the Fujita Piano Trio, writes BRIAN PAYNES. This was the fourth time that this ensemble has graced the town hall’s stage, and on each occasion the audiences have been absolutely transfixed by the technical facility, the superb musicianship, the high quality of integration and balance between the players and, not least, by the fact that the entire programme was played from memory.

The opening bars of their performance of Mozart’s Piano Trio in C major, K548 gave an immediate vision of the glories to come. They were played with a precision and a devotion to detail that was ever-present throughout the entire work. The ensemble work was immaculate, the phrasing sophisticated and the tone always beautiful. A personal impression, though, was that the entire reading was, perhaps, a little understated and the balance a little awry. That, however, may not have been the feeling of those sitting downstairs. The truth is that for all of us the performance illuminated the genius that is Mozart.

The performance of Brahms’s Piano Trio in C, Op 87 was clearly not ‘understated.' Here was true Brahmsian depth of tone in the fiery, passionate passages, delicate intimacy in the many virtuosic moments given to each player, freedom and flexibility of phrasing at all times, a close attention to the minutiae of detail, keen observation of the constant variation in dynamic levels and a total command of the internal balance. Their encore - A Haydn Presto - merely enhanced our admiration of this remarkable ensemble.

Throughout the recital there was continuous display of the highest level of musicianship and of technical mastery. The fact that the three players are sisters who have been playing chamber music together since early childhood is assuredly an important factor when considering the success they, as a trio and as individuals, have enjoyed over the last near-twenty years.

Brian Paynes