What better ensemble to give a London premiere than a trio named after a renowned location in London. The Barbican Piano Trio present a new suite from 'The Prince Unexpected' by British composer Joseph Phibbs, hailed by BBC Music Magazine as "one of the most successful composers of his generation", alongside timeless trios by Schumann and Schubert. Part of Bloomsbury Festival (Activists and Architects of Change)
For three decades the Barbican Piano Trio has been regarded as one of the UK's leading ensembles, with a reputation for presenting stimulating performances, for the breadth of its repertoire and for its exceptional audience rapport.
At home it appears in major festivals and concert series including Blackheath, City of London, Garsington, Guildford, Bridgenorth Haydn Festival, Frinton Festival,Harrogate, Rye, Sheffield, Spitalfields, the St Jude's Proms, Three Spires, Warwick, Bristol, Cardiff, Cambridge, Oxford and Leeds.
It visits Scotland frequently and has appeared at The Queen's Hall, Edinburgh on several occasions. The Trio has given many performances at London's Wigmore Hall, a special highlight being a performance of all Beethoven's piano trios in the Master Concert Series.
The Trio has given concerts in Germany, Belgium, Denmark, France, Holland, Sweden, Bulgaria, Italy, Spain, Romania and Russia. Further afield it has toured the Far East, South America, Kazakhstan, Kyrgystan and Uzbekistan. It has visited the USA five times, performed in major venues including at New York's Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall and in Boston, Chicago, Washington and Los Angeles.
The Trio plays all the acclaimed masterpieces for the genre but also enjoys exploring less familiar works. Recent performances have included music by Jean Françaix, Paul Schoenfield and Hugh Wood.
The Trio has also given premieres of new works by Peter Lawson, James Francis Brown, Artiom Kim, Bill Campbell and David Matthews.
Its discography on ASV, Guild, Black Box and Dutton feature works by Mendelssohn, Lalo, Tchaikovsky, Taneyev, Rachmaninov, Schnittke, John Ireland and Alan Bush.
As part of its commitment to education work, the trio holds regular masterclasses and presents informative concerts for students of all ages.