Sōra: a bird that sings while taking flight (Amerindian name)
It is this flight that characterizes the career of the Trio Sōra, composed of pianist Pauline Chenais, violinist Clémence de Forceville and cellist Angèle Legasa. Their love of sharing, of the stage, of travel and of the piano trio repertoire unites these three musicians, and they are determined to uphold this extraordinary genre.
Noticed for the audacity and clarity of their interpretations, it was after careful consideration that they chose to devote their first recording to the six great piano trios of Ludwig van Beethoven. Strengthened by the meticulous exploration of his manuscripts, his correspondences and the rigorous analysis of his scores, the musicians reveal their exploration into the modernity, complexity and richness of Beethoven’s music.
Through this BEETHOV3N triple-album, the Sōra Trio wishes to dispel the image often portrayed of Beethoven as the deaf and unhappy composer – surly, asocial and destitute – and instead bring to life the fiery youth – humorous, passionate, sensitive and perpetually in love.
The Sōra Trio was first formed in Paris, in the class of Claire Désert, at the National Superior Conservatory of Music and Dance, then in Belgium, with the Artemis Quartet, within the Queen Elizabeth Music Chapel. Decisive encounters, notably with Mathieu Herzog, András Schiff, Menahem Pressler and the Ébène Quartet, have enriched this journey, sustaining nourishing artistic identity and interpretations.
The career of the Sōra Trio thus leads the three musicians to renowned international stages, such as the Wigmore Hall and the Southbank Center in London, the Beethoven-Haus in Bonn, the Festival de Verbier, the Philharmonie de Paris, the Louvre Auditorium, the Folle Journée de Nantes or the Festival d’Aix-en-Provence.
Rewarded several times – the Parkhouse Award and HSBC Prize of Académie du Festival d’Aix-en-Provence in 2017, the Special Prize of the Verbier Festival Academy in 2018 and a Borletti-Buitoni Trust Fellowship in 2020 – the ensemble is today in residence at the Singer-Polignac Foundation, Le Dimore Del Quartetto, ProQuartet-CEMC and supported by the Boubo-Music Foundation, the Günther Caspar Foundation, Spedidam, Pleyel and the musical patronage of the Swiss Life Foundation.
Clémence de Forceville plays a violin Giovanni Battista Guadagnini (1777) and Angèle Legasa, a cello Giulio Cesare Gigli (1767), instruments generously loaned by the Boubo-Music Foundation.