Mosa Trio

Musicians, August 20 2022

“I found the Mosa Trio’s playing extremely compelling, imaginative and vivid. Their music-making is rhetorically gripping, stylistically varied and sensitively shaped. I am fortunate enough to hear many wonderful chamber ensembles, but I find it very rare to hear one that sounds as distinct and personal as the Mosa Trio.”— Mark Steinberg, Brentano String Quartet —

This is a very striking description of the Mosa Trio by Mark Steinberg (Brentano Quartet). Because of the almost inexhaustible energy the members of the young Dutch-Belgian piano trio put into understanding their repertoire, their performances comprise great expression, inner depth and a homogeneous interpretation. The trio displays this in a broad repertoire, ranging from early classicism to contemporary music, showing great interest in the performance practice of these different style periods. As a result, the trio’s performances stand out not only for their technical mastery, but also for their versatility.

Thanks to their characteristic way of playing, “it’s always a great pleasure for the audience to attend one of their concerts” (Vincent Coq, Trio Wanderer). The trio likes to challenge their audience by programming different, contrasting styles in one concert, so that the audience not only hears music they know and love, but also discovers new or unknown music. These exciting choices in programming make a concert by the Mosa Trio a unique experience. Or, as Festival Classique wrote in 2013: “Whether the music sounds playful or musing, the Mosa Trio pulls the audience into the music, until we can almost feel the notes. The Mosa Trio excels in creating a story for the audience.” The personal way in which the trio talks about the musical works, also contributes to creating this story. Especially when performing contemporary pieces, this brings beautiful and often new insights to the audience.

The international career of the Mosa Trio took off with prizes at prestigious competitions such as the 14th Concours International de Musique de Chambre de Lyon (2018, FR.), 31st FNAPEC Concours européen Musique d’Ensemble (2017, FR), the International Orlando Competition (2015, NL), the ‘Supernova – the Future Sound of Classical Music’ (2014, BE), the Concours International de Musique de Chambre d’Illzach (2013, FR) and the Storioni Ensemble Competition (2012, NL). The Mosa Trio was a semi-finalist of the prestigious Melbourne International Chamber Music Competition (2018, AU).

Since then, the Mosa Trio has played in major venues in the Low Countries, including the Concertgebouw Amsterdam, the Muziekgebouw Eindhoven, and BOZAR Brussels. International tours took them to concerts in Italy, France, the United Kingdom, Austria, Luxembourg, Australia and the People’s Republic of China. In 2017, the Mosa Trio featured as Ensemble in Residence at the world-famous Piano Festival in La Roque d’Anthéron. In 2018, the trio performed Beethoven’s Triple Concerto with the Orchestre de l’Opéra de Lyon under Bernhard Kontarsky.

The Mosa Trio has featured in dozens of live radio and television broadcastings, including a concert recording for the program ‘Generatie K’ on Canvas (VRT) and recordings for Klara during the Klarafestival and for Radio 4 in the Concertgebouw Amsterdam. In 2018, the trio released it’s debut cd ‘Portraits’ on the label Antarctica Records.

Not only do the members of the Mosa Trio share their passion for classical music on stage, they also regularly teach in masterclasses and workshops at e.g. the Sichuan Conservatory of Music (China) and the Orlando Festival Ensemble Course.

The name of the Mosa Trio is derived from Mosa Trajectum, the Latin denomination of the city of Maastricht. The trio was first coached at the Conservatory of Maastricht by Henk Guittart (Schönberg Quartet) and Tonie Ehlen. It then went on to study in Paris with the Trio Wanderer and thanks to the European Chamber Music Academy at institutions like the Conservatoire National Supérieur in Paris and the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna. The Mosa Trio attended masterclasses by Menahem Pressler (Beaux Arts Trio), Mark Steinberg (Brentano Quartet), Johannes Meissl (Artis Quartet), Hatto Beyerle (Alban Berg Quartet), Mark Steinberg (Brentano Quartet) and Avedis Kouyoumdjian.