PERFORMERS
- Josefina Urraca, piano
- Julia Yang, cello
- Mélanie Clapiès, violin
ABOUT THE CONCERT
The “Kakadu” Variations is the nickname for Ludwig van Beethoven's set of variations for piano trio on the popular tune “Ich bin der Schneider Kakadu” from a Singspiel by Wenzel Müller. Though Beethoven appears to have drafted the work around the turn of the nineteenth century, it was not published until 1824, as Opus 121a—the last of his piano trios to appear in print. Its most striking feature is the dramatic contrast between the long, brooding G-minor introduction—weightier and more searching than the material that follows—and the genial, light-hearted variations on Müller's cheerful theme. Witty, virtuosic and full of character, the work shows Beethoven treating a simple popular melody with affectionate humor and inexhaustible invention.