“Our 'French Album' is being followed here by the 'Russian Album', which could barely be more contrasting in mood. The 'French Album' is spring-like and bright, whereas the 'Russian Album' is sombre and melancholic for the most part. As a concert title for the 'Russian Album', we chose the name of Tolstoy‘s drama 'The Light Shines in the Darkness', as all three trios contain radiant moments full of hope alongside the gloom.

Arensky and Shostakovich both dedicated their trios to the memory of friends who had passed away. Rachmaninov called his first work in this genre 'Trio élégiaque' and closed it with a funeral march, even though there was no obvious reason for doing so. Shostakovich’s second trio is probably the best-known work on this CD. It was written in Leningrad in 1944, and no listener is likely to be able to overhear the despair that prevailed at this time against the background of the Second World War.

Because of this feeling, we only play this work at the end of a concert. After all the grief, desperation, cruelty and lamenting, the very last bars in E major are pervaded by a glimmer of hope – the light that shines in the darkness.” - Annette von Hehn

Atos Trio:
- Annette von Hehn, violin
- Stefan Heinemeyer, cello
- Thomas Hoppe, piano