Trio con Brio Copenhagen, a family that plays together, appears at the UGA Performing Arts Center Monday, March 14 with music by Beethoven, Prokofiev and Tchaikovsky. The trio — comprised of two sisters, violinist Soo-Jin Hong and cellist Soo-Kyung Hong, and the latter’s husband, pianist Jens Elvekjaer — appears regularly at the world’s leading venues and concert series, including Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center.
A pre-performance talk will be given in Ramsey Concert Hall at 6:45 p.m. (free admission).
BBC Music magazine called the group’s recording of the complete Beethoven piano trios “a triumph.” Their UGA Presents performance at Hodgson Concert Hall opens with Beethoven’s Trio in E-flat major, Op. 70, No. 2, a piece program annotator Laurie Shulman calls “something of a sleeper among Beethoven’s chamber works.” She says it is remarkable for its “intimacy and melodious atmosphere.”
The trio, which was founded at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna in 1999, plays both older and new music. They have made their own contribution to the repertoire by arranging numbers from Prokofiev’s thrilling ballet Romeo and Juliet. In Athens they’ll play the skittering “Juliet – the Young Girl” and the strutting “Masks,” music for Romeo, Mercutio, and Benvolio arriving at the Capulets’ ball. “The Montagues and the Capulets” communicates the menacing antipathy between the two houses. And Prokofiev’s portrait of Romeo’s friend Mercutio provides dazzling opportunities for all three players.
Shulman writes that Tchaikovsky’s monumental piano trio “stands alone among his other chamber compositions, an independent only child with a big ego.” It is essentially a requiem for his friend Nikolai Rubenstein, a virtuoso pianist and director of the Moscow Conservatory who died at just 45 years old. A large-scale work in just two movements, it honors Rubenstein’s blazing pianistic talent, as the piano shines brilliantly throughout.
Classical music in the UGA Presents season continues with Edgar Meyer and the Scottish Ensemble (April 1) and the Pacifica Quartet and clarinetist Anthony McGill (April 19). The Atlanta Symphony Orchestra (May 1) appears during the Performing Arts Center’s 25th anniversary gala week to perform music by Bruch and Beethoven.
For each of these performances, 25 tickets are available for just $25, to mark the 25th anniversary of the Performing Arts Center. Tickets for UGA students are always $10.
For a complete list of UGA Presents performances, click here.
Three Ways to Order Tickets
- Purchase tickets online 24/7 online here.
- Call the Performing Arts Center Box Office at (706) 542-4400, Mon.-Fri., 10:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.
- Visit the UGA Performing Arts Center Box Office, Mon.-Fri., 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (5 minute parking is available in the drop off circle at the Performing Arts Center for purchasing or picking up tickets.)
COVID protocols
For information about the Performing Arts Center’s current COVID-19 protocols, click here. Flexible ticketing will be in place for all performances occurring through May. Patrons may exchange tickets for another performance or receive a full refund until 12:00 p.m. on the day of the performance, if occurring on a weekday, or by Friday at 5:00 p.m. if occurring on a weekend.