Piano trio brings 'ghostly' sound to Thompson

With an energetic smile and a nod of her head, violinist Ji-Woon Jung cued the beginning notes of the classical music that filled Thompson Recital Hall during Sunday's faculty/guest recital. The trio performing at the concert included Jung, a part-time assistant professor of piano; pianist Hye-Seon Choi and cellist Yeon-ji Yun. Jung and Yun are both pursuing doctoral degrees at Indiana University, where they both serve as teaching assistants.

The group played two pieces, Beethoven's Trio in D Major for piano, violin and Shostakovich's cello, Op. 70 No. 1 and Trio in E Minor for violin, cello and piano Op. 67. Choi said she chose the pieces for their "ghostly" atmospheres, as the recital was originally planned for a time closer to Halloween in October. She said Beethoven's composition is called "Ghost Trio," and she thought it shared the theme of the Shostakovich piece. He composed it during World War II as a dedication to a friend who was killed in a Nazi concentration camp.

"I thought rather than doing two separate pieces, there is some connection between two pieces," Choi said.

The trio will be performing another concert today at University of Indianapolis in the Christel DeHaan Fine Arts Center's Ruth Lilly Performance Hall.

"Sometimes I play [a] solo recital, but I think that making music together is so much fun," Choi said as her fellow musicians nodded in agreement.

The women have only recently united their musical talent, and laughed at how little time they have had to rehearse together for these recitals. Choi and Jung met several years ago when Choi was playing a concert at Indiana University and Jung was in the orchestra there.

"We started hanging out and then eating lunch," Jung said, "and then we kind of said 'Why don't we play together?'"

"Then we [found] a stellar cellist here," Choi said as she gestured to Yun.

The recital was only attended by about 20 people, a few of whom were reading and writing during the performance, glancing up at the musicians while highlighting lines in textbooks. Even though a few members of the audience were lost during intermission, the attendees showed rapt attention during the second piece of the night.

Despite disappointing attendance numbers, the performers said they felt a good response from the audience. Choi said she understood that it is difficult for students to attend recitals because of homework and other commitments, but she still encourages them to come.

"We can feel what [the] audience feels when we are playing and definitely there was something," Jung said. "It felt really good playing for [an] audience who is appreciating us."

The performance served as recital credit for students in the School of Music, but attendance was not required for any particular academic credit. Sophomore cellist Kara Hartten said she came because she loves hearing classical groups, and Shostakovich is one of her favorite composers.

"I thought it was great. ... I was impressed by how much energy they used when they performed," Hartten said. "The power it takes to play some of those things, just because it's so loud ... to make that kind of sound takes skill.