A cellist, a pianist and a violinist make up the Vienna Piano Trio. They will perform Wednesday, Sept. 16 at 7:30 p.m. in the Madsen Recital Hall.
This renowned ensemble tours the world and plays in famous concert halls such as the Lincoln Center in New York, Cite de la Musique in Paris and Teatro Colon in Buenos Aires.
The trio was named as one of the world’s leading ensembles of cello, piano and violin by the Washington Post.
New York Times writer Allan Kozin said that the trio had a youthful look.
“It plays with the energy of a college ensemble just discovering the power and passion built into the repertory work, but the polish of long acquaintance,” Kozin said. “That is an accomplishment.”
The group was formed in 1988 with violinist Wolfgang Redik, cellist Marcus Trefny and pianist Stefan Mendl. Matthias Gredler became the new cellist in 2001 and David McConnell recently joined as the new violinist.
The upcoming BYU performance is a part of their first tour with McConnell. It is also a part of BYU’s Destination: Austria series that consists of three performances by ensembles based in that country. The program will consist of compositions by Mozart, Beethoven and Schubert
Mendl began playing the piano at five according to the Trio’s website. He won competitions in his early youth that earned him soloist concert performances that were predominately in Europe. The International Schubert Society awarded him a Grand Prix Franz Schubert in 1993. He also plays with the Hagen Quartet and the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra and other ensembles.
Gredler was born in Munich and first learned how to play cello from his father according to his biography on the website. He studied under Heinrich Schiff and Clemens Hagen in Vienna for eight years. He won awards as a student, helped found the Viatores Quartet and was a solo cellist for the Munich Chamber Orchestra.
McConnell was born in Santa Rosa, California where he began playing the violin at age four. His biography stated that he later attended the Crowden School of Music at Berkeley. He joined an international music group for young students at the Yehudi Menuhin School near London. The biography also provided that he studied at New England Conservatory of Music in Boston and that he actively participates in humanitarian efforts.
