Dobrzynski's Piano Trio in a minor dates from 1833 and was published the following year by the German firm of Breitkopf & Härtel. The work was dedicated to Johann Nepomuk Hummel, the famous piano virtuoso, and bears certain stylistic similarities to the compositions of that composer. Schumann, who reviewed it, found much to recommend. It was probably Dobrzynski's best-known chamber work and enjoyed a degree of popularity in Germany and Austria up until the First World War, after which it, along with so many other fine works from the Romantic era, disappeared. The first subject of the opening Allegro moderato serves as a kind of motto. In the Scherzo, which comes next, the strings are pitted against the piano, but in the trio, they talk among themselves while the piano provides an arabesque accompaniment. The center of gravity is the magnificent Adagio fantastico. Here, much drama is created by the use of a declamatory recitative style. The finale, Rondo, shimmers with dance-like brilliance
Ignacy Feliks Dobrzynski (1807-67) was the son of a kapellmeister to a Polish count who held much the same duties that Haydn did with the Esterhazys. Training from his father and experience with the count’s orchestra provided Dobrzynski’s early musical education. Later, he went to the Warsaw Conservatory and studied piano and composition with Josef Elsner. While he achieved only moderate success in his native Poland, in Germany, his works were highly praised, and critical reviews in newspapers, such as those in the influential city of Leipzig, were very favorable.
We obtained a copy of the 1834 Breitkopf edition on which our new edition is based. We hope that this lovely work will find its way into the concert hall as well as onto the stands of amateur players.
