Alexander Borodin’s String Trio in G minor for two violins and cello unfolds in a single brief movement. Composed in 1855, it is a set of eight variations on a once popular Russian folk song, Chem tebya ya ogorchila(“What have I done to hurt you?”).
A single violin begins the melancholy theme and is joined soon in a canon by the other two instrumental voices. Each variation opens the door to a new and distinct musical landscape. Flowing lines give way to reverberant pizzicati and bagpipe drones. The piece ends with the same quiet, heartfelt canonic lament with which it began.
Recordings
Borodin: String Trio in G minor, Moscow String Quartet Amazon
Featured Image: “Illumination on the Moika Embankment in St. Petersburg” (1856), Vasily Sadovnikov
