Rachmaninoff - Trio élégiaque No. 2, I. Moderato (arr. for flute, cello and piano)

Sergei Rachmaninoff
Trio élégiaque No. 2 in D Minor
I. Moderato
Arranged for flute, cello and piano by Arin Sarkissian

Arin Sarkissian, flute
Nathan Hsu, cello
Kyung-A Yoo, piano

Drawing upon the Russian tradition of dedicating piano trios in memorial, this piece serves as Rachmaninoff’s tribute to Tchaikovsky, whose sudden passing left Rachmaninoff deeply
shocked and distressed. The very evening of Tchaikovsky’s death, Rachmaninoff began
composing the trio, dedicating it “To the memory of a great artist.” In fact, the three-movement structure of this work closely resembles Tchaikovsky’s own Piano Trio in A Minor, Op. 50.

The first movement begins with a funeral march that establishes a tonal gravity to the depths of D minor. Lamentful lyricism ensues, weighed down by the heavy melancholy of Rachmaninoff’s sorrow. Though passionate pleas burst throughout the movement, every statement is shadowed by the haunting inevitability of demise, bringing the movement to an end in solemn resignation. This piece is primarily a testament to the virtuosity of the pianist, including a quasi-cadenza passage. Yet, my appreciation towards this trio proved to be inescapable, and after a devastating year of so much loss, I deeply felt the compulsion to present it. Adapting the violin part to the flute has brought me countless coloristic possibilities: a ghost-like transparency to emulate the sordini (string mute), pecky buoyancy in stylizing pizzicato lines, energized articulatory placements as my violin “bow,” and so many more creative opportunities.