String trio no. 1

The first movement is based on the unison of chords which are repeated obdurately and establish a rhythmic dialogue in which the backbeat predominates, contrasting with more languid moments and then more energetic episodes, producing a tension and release full of lyricism and character.
In the second movement, the feeling of a song moves towards a more solitary presence of the three instruments, which accompany each other as if in a ballad. A waft of popular music which takes the theme of El Rossinyol, full of longing, and parades it among the three instruments, created a very inspired backbeat.
The third movement makes a very brief foray into jazz. Benejam is one of those composers who is unashamedly infl uenced by this genre. Here, the two violins and the viola face off against each other in syncopation with notes that rouse and transport us to the warmer climes of the America where they found root.
The fourth and final movement picks up the character of the first movement again, more restless and exultant, returning to the unisons of the three instruments and the repetition of chords which combine with the melody; a melody which is depicted in different colours, some more vivid, others more lyrical, but always intense right through to the end.