Zürcher Pianotrio

Gabriel Adorjan - violin
Joël Marosi - cello
Christiane Frucht - piano

The Zürcher Pianotrio belongs to the group of leading young ensembles and over the past few years has established itself as a major player in the chamber music world.

The musicians met during the First International Jerusalem Music Encounter, which was held in 1993 under the leadership of Isaac Stern, Yo Yo Ma, Emanuel Ax and Yefin Bronfman. Already the following year, the trio won first prize at the Charles Hennen competition in the Netherlands. There followed first prize at the Mendelssohn competition in Berlin and third prize at the international competition in Osaka, Japan in 1996. In 1997 the Trio received a stipend from the Swiss Migros-Genossenschaftsbund. In 2001, the Trio won first prize in the International Pianotrio competition, and an important prize of the Concert Society in Munich.
There followed numerous invitations from Germany, Israel, Belgium, Switzerland, USA and the Netherlands. In 1996 the Tanglewood Festival (USA) invited the ensemble as "Trio in Residence". In 1997 Isaac Stern invited them to participate in the Isaac Stern Chamber Music Workshop in Carnegie Hall, where the ensemble gave its New York debut for a full audience.

Amongst the most important mentors is the Alban Berg Quartett, with whom the Zürcher Pianotrio studied from 1996-2002 at the Music Conservatory in Cologne. Further important coaching was received from Leon Fleischer, Menahem Pressler and from members of both the Juilliard Quartet and the Emerson Quartet.

In 1998 Ars Musici produced their first CD with piano trios by Beethoven, Mendelssohn and Rihm. Further recordings with compositions by Astor Piazzolla, Daniel Schnyder, Charles Ives, and Shostakovitch appeared with Claves Records and were met with great enthousiasm by the press.

The Zurcher Pianotrio is a regular guest at numerous well-known chamber music series and festivals, such as in the Wigmore Hall in London, theLuzern Festival, the Schwetzinger Festspiele, the KIssinger Sommer, and the Aldenburgh Festival. As Trio in Residence at the Murten Festival in Switzerland, the trio played Beethoven's Triple concerto with the Prague Philharmonia Orchestra.