Carl Maria von Weber (1786–1826) is best known as the first German Romantic opera composer, with his operas Der Freischütz (1821) and Oberon (1826) defining the German Romantic character. His operas featured the supernatural, the Devil, magic, and the omnipresent dark and foreboding woods that would come to influence so many later Romantic composers, such as Felix Mendelssohn, Franz Liszt, and Richard Wagner. In addition to his renown as an operatic composer, Weber was also a virtuoso pianist and an accomplished guitarist. It was largely for his own performances on piano and guitar that he wrote many of his songs, solo works, and chamber music, including his Trio in G minor, Op. 63.

 

Weber wrote his trio in the midst of completing Der Freischütz, completing the trio in 1819 while on hiatus from composing the opera. Despite the forward-looking Romanticism of his opera, the trio is a more traditional Classical work, likely written for an evening’s entertainment at home rather than a concert stage. Dedicated to his friend and flutist Dr. Philipp Jungh, the work was premiered at the house of another composer, the violinist Louis Spohr. It would prove to be his final completed chamber work.

 

The first movement presents Weber’s flair for the dramatic, with a dark and brooding first theme that is accompanied by a rumbling piano, punctuated with moments of virtuosity that contrasts the lighter second theme. The march-like Scherzo is characterized by a sharp and aggressive theme that abruptly gives way to a waltz in the trio. The third movement, titled “Shepherd’s Lament,” opens with a reworking of a lied by Wilhelm Ehlers, with text originally written by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (Da droben auf jenem Berg) in 1804. The original poem describes a heartbroken and melancholy shepherd, watching over his sheep while lamenting his lost love. It is only in the finale where the influence of Der Freischütz becomes apparent, most notably in his quotation of the diabolical trills from Caspar’s drinking song.

 

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Commissioned in 2020 by flutist Carol Wencenc in celebration of her ‘Golden Anniversary of Performing,’ Jake Heggie’s (b. 1961) Full Circle 50 is an exploration of style, with each movement encapsulating a different aspect of Heggie’s influences. The first movement, “Golden,” is a duet between the flute and cello overtop of a laconic accompaniment in the piano, reminiscent of many of Heggie’s art songs. “Travel Travail” is an aural depiction of an artist’s life on the road, complete with the knocking of doors in the piano. “Hummingbird” showcases Heggie’s love of literature, avoiding the stereotypical depictions of hummingbirds in music in favor of a more static character. Based on Raymond Carver’s poem of the same name, the third movement utilizes a pizzicato piano technique that underpins the strange harmonies of the flute and cello lines. “Full Circle” develops one theme through different styles of music, beginning with a stately Baroque-inspired line that morphs throughout the movement into a fiendishly virtuosic tarantella.

 

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Composer, conductor, and flutist Philippe Gaubert (1879–1941) was one of the foremost flutist’s of his time, eventually leading to his appointment at the Paris Conservatoire. His music was heavily influenced by his French contemporaries—he regularly conducted the works of Claude Debussy, Jacques Ibert, Gabriel Fauré, and Maurice Ravel—and he was especially influenced by the Impressionistic art of his time, including by artists such as Claude Monet and Pierre-August Renoir. His aptly titled Trois Aquarelles (Three Watercolors) highlights both of these influences.

Gaubert had first written Trois Aquarelles for violin, cello, and piano, though he later thought that it would work equally as well for flute. Originally written in 1915 while he was serving in the French Army during World War One, these musical sketches remain shockingly optimistic. The first movement, “Par un clair matin” (On a Clear Morning) contrasts a singing duet between the flute and cello over a cascading piano accompaniment with a highly colorful and quintessentially impressionistic middle section. “Soir d’automne”  (Autumn Evening) depicts a melancholic stroll, nostalgic for times past. “Sérénade” is a lively dance with Iberian influences, perhaps reflecting the fact that Gaubert had a summer home in the Basque region of Spain. The middle of the third movement returns to the themes of both the first and second movements (though each is harmonically altered) before returning to his Spanish dance.

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Notes written by Brendan Jacklin.