Classical Music - Trio Wanderer

The first thing I ask Michael Marwood, the concert secretary of the Nicholas Yonge Society, is how he manages to get his Lewes venue to punch so far above its weight. The latest offering this Friday are Trio Wanderer, just about the best piano trio in the world. When they play London, they play the Wigmore Hall. They travel regularly to Tokyo, New York, Paris, Berlin. They have played in La Scala, in Milan. And now the Sussex Downs College! “All my children are involved in classical music, so I keep my ear to the ground,” he says. “I have good contacts and know all the agents. My son booked the Trio for the West Cork Music Festival and rated them so highly I booked them myself. I also book very early.” He doesn’t mention the mounting prestige of the society, which has now been going for 46 years.

The Trio are from France, but their name pays homage to Schubert (it was his nickname) and to German Romanticism in general. They have a broad repertoire, but are most at home playing the likes of Beethoven, Haydn, Mozart and of course the dramatic and melancholic sounds of Schubert. Today’s programme consists of Brahms’ trio opus 8, Mendehlsson’s Trio opus 66, and Schubert’s ‘Notturno’. As usual the concert will start at 8.10. I finish the interview with a question I’ve been burning to ask. Why the funny time? Michael laughs. “We’re world famous for our strange starting time. It’s been that way for years. Originally it was to allow people to get the 6.47 from Victoria and arrive on time.”