Musiqa will perform Piano Trio No. 2 by Musiqa composer Pierre Jalbert, as a part of The White Album, January 7, the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts, Zilkha Hall.

Program Note

My second piano trio was written for the Morgenstern Trio (from Germany) for the Arizona Friends of Chamber Music. The work is in two movements of contrasting character. A couple of ideas inspired each movement: the first was the thought of a desert landscape at night, desolate and calm; the second came from an incident driving home in Houston. I was driving through downtown late at night on an elevated highway, which runs through the center of town. There were just enough cars on the road to feel like it was busy, but there were no traffic jams so everyone was going at a high rate of speed, some cars weaving in and out of lanes. Coming around a large curve, I looked over at the downtown skyline as I passed very near the buildings. Since this was an elevated highway, I was looking at the 4th or 5th floors of most buildings, and as I glanced at the buildings, they seemed to be going by in slow motion. This provided the impetus for the second movement. These were simply starting points and the music itself eventually developed on its own terms.

–Pierre Jalbert

About Pierre Jalbert

Earning widespread notice for his richly colored and superbly crafted scores, Pierre Jalbert has developed a musical language that is engaging, expressive, and deeply personal. Among his many honors are the Rome Prize, the BBC Masterprize, the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center’s 2007 Stoeger Award, and a 2010 award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. His music has been performed worldwide. His recent works include Fire and Ice  (2007), commissioned for the Oakland East Bay, Marin, and Santa Rosa Symphonies, Autumn Rhapsody  (2008), commissioned by the Vermont Symphony, and Shades of Memory  (2011) premiered by the Houston Symphony. He has served as Composer-in-Residence with the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra (2002-2005), California Symphony (1999-2002), and Music in the Loft in Chicago (2003). Jalbert is Professor of Music at Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music in Houston.