Freakshow

Paddington Trio makes it's PENTATONE debut with Freakshow, an album bringing together Dmitri Shostakovich's two Piano Trios and the first album recording of Freakshow by Irish composer Sam Perkin. Inspired by the stories of people once labelled "freaks" and pushed to the margins of society, Perkin's seven miniatures portray figures such as the Gentle Giant and the Armless Fiddler, looking beyond spectacle to the lives and humanity behind these labels. Shostakovich's trios offer a compelling counterpart. Written more than twenty years apart, they reflect contrasting periods in the composer's life, from the youthful intensity of the First Piano Trio to the Second, shaped by the death of his close friend Ivan Sollertinsky and the devastation of the Second World War. Together, these works explore vulnerability, suffering, resilience and the ways music can give voice to those too often overlooked. Formed in London during the pandemic, Paddington Trio brings together a shared interest in vivid musical storytelling and repertoire that challenges familiar perspectives. In Freakshow, the ensemble places music from different eras in conversation, inviting listeners to look beyond the labels history has attached to extraordinary lives. With Perkin's contemporary work alongside two cornerstones of the piano trio repertoire, the album marks the beginning of Paddington Trio's recording relationship with PENTATONE.

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