Press Room

 

The Shostakovich anniversary was also the focus of an ambitious and rewarding concert Wednesday night at the Peabody Conservatory featuring the Monument Piano Trio...  The radiant soprano Janice Chandler-Etieme reconfirmed her standing as one of Baltimore's vocal treasures when she joined the trio for an emotionally potent account of the intimate, symbol-filled Seven Romances on Poems of Alexander Blok... Violinist Igor Yuzefovich, cellist Dariusz Skoraczewski and pianist Michael Sheppard matched the singer's eloquence and intense concentration.  The composer's final symphony, no. 15, with its enigmatic quotations from the Rossini's William Tell Overture and Wagner's Ring, sounds remarkably persuasive in Victor Danchenko's ingenious arrangement for piano trio and percussion.  The Monument members and percussionists Barry Dove, Robert Jenkins and Brian Prechtl caught the score's high and low spirits, irony and tragedy in a taut, riveting performance.  Yuzefovich, Skoraczewski and Sheppard did mostly effective work in the one well-known item on the bill, [Shostakovich's] Piano Trio no. 2.

- Tim Smith
Baltimore Sun
September 30, 2006

An die Musik's ensemble in residence, the excellent Monument Piano Trio, split in duos for most of its concert Saturday afternoon. Dariusz Skoraczewski delivered a remarkably assured performance of Rachmaninoff's Cello Sonata - ruby red in tone color, white hot in expressive shading. ...  Sheppard's playing was stronger when he backed Igor Yuzefovich in Grieg's C minor Violin Sonata. The violinist's unfailingly lyrical line and gleaming tone sent the music soaring. The three musicians gave a taut account of a student work by Shostakovich, the Piano Trio No. 1, which meanders through various styles before, surprisingly, settling into romantic cliche.

- Tim Smith
 Baltimore Sun
November 22, 2005

 

...With the first note of the Haydn trio,[C Major, Hob. XV:27] Yuzefovich, Skoraczewski and Sheppard became a unit, no longer individuals playing together but rather one intricately voiced stream of music, taking the audience through lands of wonder, worry, pleasure and pain. The young, prize-winning performers demonstrated mature musicianship with every meaningful sound blended together.  ... Next, Dvorak's "Dumky" trio grabbed the audience by the throat with the cello's first imploring notes and didn't let go through all five Slavic dances. Not only was Monument's ability to capture the listener with its strength of character entirely breathtaking, but also the equally important precision with which they were able to masterfully play at thrilling tempos. ... After the audience caught their breath during intermission, the trio embarked upon a journey through Mendelssohn's warm trio [D minor, op. 49]. Just as they did through the first half, the trio clicked tightly together while allowing every note to carry its own meaning and every instrument its own powerful voice and personality. There were moments of mystery that held the audience at ransom, begging for resolution. When the trio decided to grant the audience relief, it felt as though we were submerging into warm baths of safety and comfort, free from the stresses of the world.  With the last bold chordal stretch of the final trio, the audience was left speechless, capable only of clapping our hearts out.

- Sasha Kozlov
 Johns Hopkins News-Letter
September 30, 2005


...Violinist Igor Yuzefovich, cellist Maxim Kozlov, and pianist Michael Sheppard revealed plenty of individual and collective strengths in an appealing program... the clarity of articulation and tightness of ensemble work proved admirable; the players took that finale [Haydn Piano Trio in G Major] at Mach speed without losing their grip...

- Tim Smith
 Baltimore Sun
December 2, 2004


... The jaunty, impish Beethoven Trio was full of sudden shifts in dynamics and timbre,... the three musicians often threw a phrase back and forth as if engaged in a spirited game of one-upmanship... the Monument [Piano] Trio turned its youthful enthusiasm to an intense romanticism...

- Geoffrey Himes,
 Baltimore City Paper
October 13, 2004


... The penetrating musicianship and dazzling virtuosity for which Mr. Sheppard is known was clear with every note ... Mr. Yuzefovich proved to be an equally great musical contributor, adding another beautiful layer of melody to the program. His technically flawless control over the violin, made only sweeter by his long, singing tone, were especially clear in the Mendelssohn...  Maxim Kozlov brought to the trio a certain depth and richness of sound, and managed to steal the audience's breath... in the second movement of the Mendelssohn trio. There, his passionate and painful cry was like a hand grabbing at the heart...

- Sasha Kozlov
 Johns Hopkins News-Letter
October 15, 2004