1. Allegro
2. Andante
3. Vivace 

Suk composed the earliest version of his Piano Trio in 1889 during his first year as a composition pupil at the Prague Conservatory, originally in four movements. A year later, he revised while in the class of Karel Stecker (to whom the trio is dedicated), and the first 

performance was given at an evening of music by student composers on 15 January 1891. Suk completed the revision process once he had joined Dvořák’s composition class (he later married Dvořák’s daughter), completing the definitive version in spring 1891. The opening of the Allegro is muscular and impassioned; its bold opening theme gives way to a more tender contrasting theme and these two characterful ideas form the basis of what follows. Even though Suk was still a student, his handling of form is impressively confident and closely-argued. He brings this admirably compact movement to an affirmative close in C major. The second movement is marked Andante and it resembles a gentle folk dance, reaching a dramatic climax before moving into a tranquil coda, still dominated by the dotted rhythms that have permeated the whole movement. The third movement, marked Vivace, is a vigorous finale, with some enchanting moments of repose. A change from C minor to C major sets up the coda which brings the work to an impressive conclusion. 

© Nigel Simeone 2026