The OSAKA INTERNATIONAL CHAMBER MUSIC COMPETITION 2023 entered its second day with the first round of Part II – piano trios and quartets. Eleven ensembles played from ten in the morning until 7:30 at night – a marathon event. By the end one just yearned for silence.  But along the way we heard some magnificent music-making. Of the eleven ensembles, nine were piano trios, not surprising as such established trios are far more numerous than quartets. Nine came from Europe, and five from Germany alone. The required repertory consisted of something by Mozart, Haydn, or Beethoven (Op. 16), plus music of either Rihm (Fremde Szene I or III), Carter (Epigrams), Hosokawa (Trio), or Schnittke (Quartet). Without exception, the modern works received performances ranging from excellent to sensational  A couple could even be called electrifying. The standard for the classical repertory was also generally very high, and there was not one ensemble that did not deserve to advance to round 2. I would not have wished to be on the jury that had to make such difficult decisions. The real standouts to my mind were the Albeniz and Michelangeli Trios. Unaccountably, the former was one of the four groups not chosen to advance – a big disappointment to many. Several pianists by themselves deserve mention, including those of the Michelangeli Trio (Riccardo Gagliardi), Capybara Quartet (Mario Haring), and Albeniz Trio (Javier Rameix).

WRITTEN BY Robert Markow