"War and Peace" presents a program of evocative works depicting timeless stories of war, anguish and the longing for happiness and peace by Ukrainian composer, Valentin Silvestrov and Russian composers, Shostakovich, Rachmaninoff and Arensky. Author and reviewer Tyran Grillo (ECM Records) describes the opening work “Farewell O World, O Earth” from Silvestrov’s Silent Songs, as “music that stops the heart and starts the mind”. Shostakovich’s epic Piano Trio no. 2 depicts the horrors of WWII while Rachmaninoff’s two song texts are both full of heartbreak and longing for happiness. The closing piece on this concert will be Anton Arensky’s deeply Romantic and passionate work, Piano Trio no. 1.
