BIOGRAPHY
The string trio „trio oreade“ is based in Zurich, Switzerland. The ensemble received a lot of attention at the International String Trio Competition in Munich in 2012, where they were awarded the First Prize. (A Second Prize was not awarded). Since then, the trio performed in renowned Swiss and international chamber music series and played their widely recognised debut concert in the Tonhalle Zürich, Switzerland.
trio oreade could also be heard at different festivals, like the „klang“-music festival in Schloss Meggenhorn near Luzern or the summer concerts in Stift Melk, Austria. The ensemble has been invited to the Menuhin Festival in Gstaad in 2016.
During the 2014/15 season the trio received e.g. invitations to play at Holzhausen-castle, Frankfurt, in the theatre „La Marotte“ in Affoltern am Albis and at the „Schlossmediale Werdenberg“ where they premiered a work by German composer Helmut Oehring.
The three musicians play instruments by the famous master A. Stradiarius ("King George" 1710, "Gibson" 1734 and "De Kermadec-Bläss" 1698) a generous loan of the Stradivari foundation Habisreutinger.
After winning the August-Pickhard Foundation’s Chamber Music Competition in January 2014, the ensemble was invited to give a concert in the „Basel Kammermusik-Gesellschaft“ series in March 2015. The concert has been recorded on both CD and DVD and is available for sale.
The three successful musicians had played in various ensembles before they decided to concentrate their energies
on the String Trio, possibly the most transparent and soloistic of all string genres.
Yukiko Ishibashi (vl) and Ursula Sarnthein (va) were awarded a 1st prize in the Kiwanis chamber music competition in Zurich 2001 with a previous string trio.
Since 2012, trio oreade has been playing with cellist Christine Hu.
From 2013 to 2015 the ensemble works with Rainer Schmidt (Hagen Quartet) as part of the „Walter Levin Chair Graduate Course for String Ensembles“ at the Hochschule für Musik Basel. Further artistic inspiration has been given by Heinrich Schiff, Giovanni Antonini & Ferenc Rados.
The three musicians describe their work together as “both enriching and enhancing”.
Despite their differing cultural backgrounds, the group speak the same musical language.
It is important to the trio to present their audience exciting, well thought-out programs and to relate „old“ to „new“ music.
Beside the great master pieces from Mozart, Beethoven and Schubert until Schönberg, the trio performs lesser known music for string trio, with special interest in the music of the 20th century.
In this vein, they performed works by GK and the String Trio Op.45 of Arnold Schönberg in the Kammermusiktag of the Tonhalle Gesellschaft, Zürich in June 2014.
The trio has set themselves lofty goals: To interpret the musical expression and intention of each composer without compromise, in a way which hopefully lifts the listening audience to a new level of musical experience.
The Neue Zürcher Zeitung writes about trio oreade's debut concert in the Tonhalle Zürich:
„The three musicians enthralled their public with a fiery interpretation of Beethoven’s String Trio in G-major Op. 9/1. Here too, in addition to perfect ensemble, an enjoyable combination of emotional commitment and understanding of form in all three movements. And the virtuosic, excitingly restless Finale was played with astonishing lightness.“
„The prevailing opinion today is that the classical music business is dying, owing to its inability to adapt to the changes of time. The „trio oreade", in its chamber music soirée in the Tonhalle, Zürich, showed just how “alive” classical music can be in the 21st Century. (…) The principle behind the programming is to present the “new” with the “old” and create a natural synthesis between the two.“
Neue Zürcher Zeitung, 2014, May 13th