Haydn’s Piano Trio in C Major was published in 1797 and was most likely written in 1794, seven years after Mozart wrote his final piano trio and around the same time that Beethoven was finishing his piano trios. The Trio in C Major was written specifically for the piano, as opposed to earlier works written for harpsichord. It is known as one of the “London Trios” since Haydn wrote it during his second and hugely successful trip to England, after his retirement as “Kapellmeister” to the Esterhazy Court of Hungary (now Austria). All of the “London” trios are considered true masterpieces and are widely performed.

Peter Schickele, composer, musician, author, and satirist, is known to many music lovers as the hilariously entertaining “P.D.Q. Bach.” His clever parodies of Baroque music, written under this name, have won him four Grammy Awards for Best Comedy Performance Album. As a serious composer, he has written over 100 works for symphony orchestra, choral groups, chamber ensembles, voice, movies, and television. His Quartet for Clarinet, Violin, Cello and Piano was written in 1982.

Austrian composer Fritz Kreisler (1875-1962) was one of the most famous violinists of his day. He performed the premiere of Elgar’s Violin Concerto in 1910, a work dedicated to him. He wrote a number of short pieces for violin, including “La Gitana” (the Gypsy) and the “Gypsy Caprice.”