A Kairos Trio & Fine Art Music Joint Performance

Maurice Ravel (March 7, 1875 to December 28, 1937) shaped early twentieth century French music with precision, color, and clarity. He fused classical forms with fresh harmonies and rhythm. From intimate piano works to luminous chamber music, his voice remains unmistakable. In 2025 we mark the 150th anniversary of his birth.

Program notes

Piano Trio in A minor, M.67 1914
Written on the eve of World War I. Basque dance rhythms meet lyrical lines and finely balanced textures. Selections will be performed.

Sonata for Violin and Cello, M.73 1920 to 1922
Dedicated to the memory of Debussy. A lean two-instrument dialogue that highlights counterpoint, rhythm, and bold timbre. Selections will be performed.

Tzigane for Violin and Piano 1924
A virtuoso rhapsody inspired by Hungarian style. A long unaccompanied opening leads to dazzling fireworks with piano.

Valses nobles et sentimentales for Piano 1911
Eight character waltzes that salute Schubert while sounding modern and clear. Light and shade move from playful sparkle to a misty epilogue.

Pavane pour une infante défunte 1899 piano original
Heard today in a piano trio arrangement. A gentle, stately dance with quiet melancholy and elegant poise.

Sonatine for Piano 1903 to 1905
Classical in outline and crystalline in touch. A graceful opening, a delicate middle movement, and a brilliant finale.

Ma mère l’Oye Mother Goose Suite for Piano Four Hands 1908 to 1910
Five fairy tales in sound. From Sleeping Beauty’s stillness to an enchanted garden, Ravel writes with childlike simplicity and vivid imagery.

Suggested Donation $20.

Kairos Trio in Collaboration with Fine Art Music Company

Kairos Trio is one of the latest ensembles to join the flourishing Philadelphia chamber music scene. A piano trio comprised of pianist Kasia Marzec-Salwinski, violinist Tom DiSarlo and cellist Talia Schiff, they knew immediately that this was an ensemble that was meant to be. Delving into both the great warhorses of the piano trio literature as well as discovering and presenting lesser-known works in this medium, the musicians bring to this new venture a collective knowledge from their past musical experiences fueled by a rekindled passion to share their creative output.

Fine Art Music Company (FAM) brings together exceptional local musicians and listeners through creative concert programming held in the intimacy of smaller halls and salons. We feel the potency and depth of classical music is best experienced in settings that bring audience and musicians nearer one another.

Thomas DiSarlo, violin

Concertmaster and solo violinist of the AmaDeus Ensemble since 1991. Former member of the Rutgers String Quartet, Pennsylvania String Quartet, and the Concerto Soloists of Philadelphia. Recordings include the Beethoven Violin Concerto and Vivaldi’s Four Seasons. Performed Bruch’s Scottish Phantasy with the Pittsburgh Symphony as a graduate competition winner.

Talia Schiff, cello

Chamber music has been a constant throughout Ms. Schiff’s career. Attended Kneisel
Hall and Bowdoin Chamber Music Festivals. Winner of the Austrian American Society Competition, performing at the Mozarteum in Salzburg, Austria. Founding member of the Castalia String Trio, semifinalists in the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition. Played with The Tenor Clef Dwellers Cello Quartet for over 10 years. Her collection of cello quartet transcriptions published by Musicelli Publications. Founding member of Elysian Camerata. Also active in orchestral performance as cellist with Delaware Symphony and Princeton Symphony Orchestras, and Opera NJ Orchestra as principal cellist. Has worked with Philadelphia’s top ensembles including Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia, Philly Pops, AVA Orchestra, Philadelphia Ballet, Opera Philadelphia, and the Philadelphia Orchestra.

Kasia Marzec-Salwinski, piano

International recitalist and chamber musician with appearances across Europe, the United States, the Middle East, and Japan, including Carnegie Hall. Co-founder and Artistic Director of Fine Art Music Company. DMA, Temple University. Affiliate Artist at Haverford College.

Rollin Wilber, piano

Philadelphia-based pianist, teacher, and composer who grew up in a family of professional musicians in the New York City area. He began piano at eight, and later studied with Maryan Filar at Temple University. He has performed recitals and concerto solos for over forty years and created narrative recital projects such as Stories in Concert and the Art of Listening seminars, which debuted at Chautauqua in 2000. In 2010 he co-founded Fine Art Music Company to present intimate, audience-engaged concerts, developing series at Ivy Hall and, since 2014, directing a concert series at the Philadelphia Ethical Society in collaboration with FAM.