Joseph Kalichstein, pianist for the Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson Trio and professor at the Juilliard School, is the man behind the Kennedy Center’s always surprising and imaginative Fortas Chamber Music Concert Series. This year marks the 35th anniversary for the trio whose two other members are the husband-and-wife team of violinist Jaime Laredo and cellist Sharon Robinson.
The Trio opens the second portion of the Fortas season with a powerhouse program featuring Beethoven’s Piano Trio in B-flat major, Schubert’s beloved “Trout Quintet” and the D.C. premiere of a Fortas co-commission by Pulitzer Prize winner Ellen Taaffe Zwilich. They are joined for the quintets by violist Michael Tree and double bassist Harold Robinson, principal bass for the Philadelphia Orchestra.
“We’ve been partners with Ellen for more than 25 years and always find her remarkable for two reasons,” Kalichstein said. “First of all, she is attentive and has an incredible ear for sound. In this work, she sees the material coming out of the sound of the bass. It leads and creates the mood of the piece. She understand strings and told us early how fascinated she was with what the bass can do.
| Onstage |
| The Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson Trio |
| Where: Kennedy Center Terrace Theater |
| When 7:30 p.m. Tuesday |
| Info: $45; 202-467-4600; 800-444-1324; kennedy-center.org |
“In this work, she incorporates Schubert’s well-known ‘Trout’ theme, then brings it into a later century by writing a second movement called the ‘Moody Trout’ that leads to the blues. Even though the trout is moody, he is also playful. Ellen’s other ability is to let go of a work once she has composed it. She was involved in our first rehearsals last August, but only to the point of taking our questions. Once she has given over a piece, it’s as if she is saying, ‘I love it, but it’s no longer mine.’ ”
When Kalichstein first took responsibility for the Fortas series, he scrambled ahead to select artists and confirm engagements. Now well into the routine, he has the leisure of planning two years in advance to get the artists he wants. One of his “gets” for this season is the Kennedy Center and NSO Music Director Christoph Eschenbach, who will don his pianist persona twice in March. The first program reunites him with baritone Matthias Goerne for Schubert’s song cycle “Winterreise.” For the second, he plays Mozart sonatas with violinist Dan Zhu.
Kalichstein eagerly continues listening to artists to experience what they have to offer, their enthusiasm about playing and how they meet his sense of what is good. “My joy is putting together programs and coming up with something great,” he says “I need to hear something that excites me and discover new vistas for myself.”
