Papaioea Trio of Palmerston North concert focuses on beginnings and endings

The Papaioea Trio is Robert Ibell (left), Guy Donaldson, and Elizabeth Patchett.

The Papaioea Trio of Palmerston North returns to the Globe Sunday Matinee series on September 24 with a programme focused on beginnings and endings.

Elizabeth Patchett began her career as an orchestral musician with the Auckland Philharmonia and in 1993 joined the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra’s second violin section.

She has toured and recorded as a member of the New Zealand Chamber Orchestra and toured for Chamber Music New Zealand as part of the Nevine String Quartet.

Robert Ibell was born in Dannevirke and brought up in Palmerston North. While training as a school teacher, he learned cello from Judith Hyatt in Wellington. Between 1986 and 1992, he studied cello in London.

From 1993 to 2019 Ibell was a member of the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra. He is now a cello and double bass teacher in Palmerston North and a freelance performer.

Guy Donaldson has been a regular performer in Manawatū, as well as a teacher and music coach. He is the convenor of the Globe Sunday Matinee series, and is a frequent performer in its concerts.

Dmitri Shostakovich wrote his first Trio in 1923 while studying at the Petrograd Conservatory. Given that Shostakovich went on to fall out of favour with the Russian government, the work speaks to us today as a sign of both darkness and hope, with the added adrenalin of youth.

Franz Schubert began composing his Piano Trio in Bb major in 1827, the year before his death. Perhaps Schubert needed a lighter project to divert his attention from the illness and melancholy that filled his life for it is a lively work, with unrivalled lyricism throughout.

Robert Schumann said of it: “One glance at the work and the troubles of our human existence disappear and all the world is fresh and bright again.”

The concert finishes with Haydn’s Gipsy Rondo from his first Piano Trio dating from 1760. A concert favourite, the piece requires virtuosity from the piano as well as the violin, while the cello is content with providing bass support.

The Details

What: Globe Sunday Matinee Concert

When: Sunday, September 24, 2.30pm

Where: Globe Theatre

Entry: Donation, recommended from $5.