Last week the world famous Weiss-Kaplan-Newman trio arrived in Moscow to play a concert as part of the Auditorium Chamber Music Series. The trio includes Yeal Weiss on piano, Mark Kaplan on violin and Clancy Newman on cello. Together, they bring decades of performance experience to the stage. The trio has a busy touring schedule and has performed throughout Europe, the U.S. and Asia, not to mention appearances at the Prague Festival, Wigmore Hall in London and the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C.
Known for its passionate performances, the Weiss-Kaplan-Newman Trio spreads its repertoire over centuries of classical music yet still play modern trio pieces often commissioned for their group.
In this performance season the trio’s line up includes modern compositions like “The Mirror with Three Faces” (2012) by Lera Auerbach and “Tunes From My Home Land” (2007) by Chen Yi. Weiss said many of the composers featured in this performance season are American artists but since group members grew up in foreign nations, the compositions show influence from their native cultures.
The individuals that make up the trio keep busy in other music projects as each maintains a career as an orchestral soloists.
Weiss recently released two albums “Robert Schumann: Piano Works” and “88 Keys to Joy,” as well as a running podcast called “Classical Minutes,” where she gives lessons and tips for classical musicians.
Kaplan is currently the violin professor at the University of Indiana, yet is also one of the most sought-after violinists in the industry today.
Newman is the youngest member of the group and balances a busy performing schedule with a thriving composing career, receiving commissions from chamber groups across the country.
The Weiss-Kaplan-Newman trio was founded in 2001 and was formally known as “Sequenza,” as different individuals were in the group. Weiss said it was such a natural feel playing with the other artists and it became clear they should start a group together. Playing in the trio is an important part of being a musician as it allows one to communicate with other musicians and respond to what they are doing musically but what attracted her to playing in this chamber group was the repertoire that was available and written for a cello-violin-piano trio Weiss said.
Weiss said the music they play has a particular meaning to the trio, however individuals will always have different emotional responses to music. The best part for the trio is when they know the audience had a strong emotional reaction to the music.
The trio performed last Tuesday in the University of Idaho Administration Auditorium.
Eric Woodard, a music education major at UI, was in the audience and said it was an intense but emotionally-moving performance.
Casey Braastad, another music education major who attended the performance, said there was no doubt from the moment they stepped on stage they were world-class musicians ready to give the audience a wonderful performance.
Whether playing a Schubert sonata, a 21st century trio piece, performing in London or the Palouse, the Weis-Kaplan-Newman trio is sharing music for all.
Ryan Tarinelli can be reached at [email protected]
steven devine | rawr
The Weiss-Kaplan-Newman Trio perform Tuesday evening in the University of Idaho Administration Auditorium. The Trio has traveled to perform all around the U.S., Europe, and the Middle East.
