Trio '86

A fortuitous wind from the west brought these three prairie-born musicians together in Montreal for their first concert in 2009.
Jennifer Thiessen, Krista Martynes, and Marc Wieser formed Trio ‘86 while discovering a shared passion for collaboration and an appreciation for the unique sonority of the clarinet-viola-piano combination. At once distinct and complimentary, these three personalities are as compatible as the timbres and voices of their
instruments.

The mission of Trio '86 is twofold: First, we are committed to expanding the available repertoire for our unique grouping; second, we are committed to promoting and presenting new modes of communication by breathing new life into the historical repertoire or commissioning and interpreting exploratory new works for this instrumentation. A relatively neglected chamber music grouping, the clarinet-viola-piano ensemble has its roots in the “Kegelstatt” trio of Mozart, the Fairytales of Robert Schumann and the Hommage à Robert Schumann of Kurtág.

After a successful series of concerts in Montreal, Trio '86 looks forward to branching out in an upcoming summer tour New England and western Canada, interacting with composers and incorporating performances based on creative techniques such as improvisation and the use of electronics.

Eager to further exploit new possibilities, this exciting young Canadian trio embraces an exploratory spirit, interpreting new and traditional repertoire, forging new paths in performance.

Individual Bios :

Clarinetist KRISTA MARTYNES studied in Colorado, and continued in Europe with the “Unanimous” First Prize from the National Conservatory of Paris, in France, and the Accademia Perosi in Italy, and Masters in Musicology at the Paris VIII University. She is a doctoral candidate at the University of Montreal specializing in mixed media with live video and electronic possibilities and digital effects.
As a classical musician, Krista toured with the “Orchestres des Regions Europpeennes” and has performed in the Abbaye de Sylvanes, Abbayes aux Dames as well as toured France, Germany, Mexico, Ukraine, and China. As a contemporary musician she was featured as a soloist at the Festival Acanthes in 2005 - 2006, Ircam Centre, Maison de la Musique in Nanterre and Theatre de Nantes in France, performed in the Musikprotokoll Festival in Italy, Klangspuren Festival and Transart Festival in Austria. She has participated in a documentary on the music of Luigi Nono in Venice. She has worked with composers including Georges Aperghis, Pascal Dusapin, Gerard Pesson, Wolfgang Rhim, Hector Parra, Vassos Nicolaou, Beat Furrer, Paul Mefano, Jorg Widmann, Zad Moultaka, and Philippe Leroux. As an improviser, she worked with Louis Sclavis at the Abbaye de Royaumont, Sylvain Kassap and Michel Massot with the Ensemble Transversale 20.21, Instant Composers Pool, Magpie Music and Dance Company in Amsterdam, and DesiDela dance company in Paris. She collaborated with sound artist Alexis O’Hara and video artist Dayna McLeod in the Edgy Women Festival in Montreal.

Violist Jennifer Thiessen's quest to craft and share her creative voice brought her from Manitoba to Montréal where she now lives and works. Her diverse interests and versatility lead her to participate in a spectrum of projects including new music, improvised music, music for dance, theatre and film, baroque period performance as well as writing, recording and performing pop and folk music. Immersed in the musical life of Montréal, Jennifer is pursuing new projects such as the launch of Trio '86 with Krista Martynes and Marc Wieser - an adventurous ensemble for viola, clarinet and piano. She has commissioned Isaiah Ceccarelli to write a piece for viola and voices which will be performed with Ensemble Kô. She is a member of the new Montréal Baroque Company and plays with the chamber-pop ensemble, Harp of the North. She has also been active in Winnipeg, recording and performing with the Record of the Week Club and playing on the sound-track of the Canadian feature film, Black Field. From 2007 to 2009, Jennifer toured extensively with the Montreal dance company La La La Human Steps. In this role, she performed music by Gavin Bryars and David Lang for 2 violas, cello and piano on the stages of such notable theatres as: Théatre de la ville in Paris, the Burgtheatre in Vienna, Sadler's Wells in London, Amsterdam's Het Muziektheater, Brooklyn Academy of Music, and theatres as far and wide as Japan, Mexico, Slovenia and Sweden. Jennifer has performed with such ensembles as Les Violons du Roy, Ensemble Appassionata, the Knowlton Festival Orchestra, the Charlottetown Festival Orchestra, l'Orchestre des grands ballets canadien de Montréal and La Nouvel Sinfonie. After studies in theology and music at the University of Manitoba, she earned a Bachelor of Music from the University of Ottawa and a Master of Music from l'Université de Montréal.
When her hands are not occupied with the viola, Je