The Merling Trio

The Merling Trio is recognized as one of today’s premier ensembles. A truly international trio, it brings together musicians from Polish, Japanese, and Dutch backgrounds. The Merling Trio has been hailed as a brilliantly distinguished group endowed with remarkable gifts of communication, magnificent precision, and an impeccable blend of sound. The trio made its New York debut in Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall in 1993 and was named a finalist for the Naumburg Foundation Chamber Music Award in 1994.

Several contemporary composers have written works for the Merling Trio. In 1993, they commissioned and premiered C. Curtis-Smith’s Second Piano Trio. In February 1998, the trio returned to Carnegie Hall for a sold-out performance of a new work by Terry Winter-Owens, commissioned by the Merling Trio with a Commissioning Grant from the American Composers Forum.

In residence at the School of Music at Western Michigan University, members of the trio are also faculty members at the Schlern International Music Festival and the ENCORE School for Strings. Festival appearances include the Banff Centre for the Arts, the Pensacola Summer Music Festival, the Skaneateles Festival, the Saugatuck Chamber Music Festival, and the Fontana Festival of Art and Music.

The Merling Trio has released a number of critically-acclaimed recordings. Their first CD (1995) featured works of C. Curtis-Smith. About the CD, Fanfare wrote, “The composer could not ask for better interpreters.” Piano Trio Classics (2001) included works by Haydn, Mozart, Brahms, Schumann, and Liszt. About the trio’s recording of works by Piazzolla and Proto, the American Record Guide said, “The Merlings play with a properly stylistic balance between abandon and control. This is an unusual and beautifully played program.” Their most recent recording, “postcards in e”, features works of Shostakovich and Dvorak.

The Cleveland Plain Dealer said, “The players shaped a grand interpretation, fluent in rhythm and rich in romantic feeling.” The Grand Rapids Press has said, “The trio…delivered a standard of playing that is on par with some of the best known violin-cello-piano teams, captivating the audience through the immediacy and extraordinary sensitivity of its playing.” The London Musical Opinion declared that the Merling Trio “made a powerful impression, with unabashed romanticism and finesse.”