Trios Are Tougher

Symphonies and string quartets get exciting, sexy nicknames: “From the New World,” “Symphony of a Thousand,” “Death and the Maiden,” “Dissonant.”

Trios have a sadder lot.

Sure, there are the “Archduke,” “Ghost” and “Dumky” trios. But those are works for piano, violin and cello.

What does a simple string trio--violin, viola and cello--get to play?

Trios. Divertimentos. Serenades.

Plus a hundred more trios.

The compensation, says cellist Andres Diaz, is that the individual parts are meatier, as you can hear when the Diaz Trio plays Thursday at the Irvine Barclay Theatre.

“The parts are harder--note for note--in string trios than in string quartets,” Diaz said in a recent cell-phone interview as he traveled to his home in Boston.

“You have to split a lot of four- or five-part harmony into three parts. It’s more complex writing. One of us is always the guinea pig. The viola or the cello has to fill in the gaps in harmony.”

Diaz, 36, and brother Roberto, 40, a violist, have been making harmony from their earliest years.

They were born in Santiago, Chile, and moved three years later with their father when he went to teach viola at Georgia’s Columbus College. Their late mother was a pianist, as is their stepmother.

But neither son felt pressured by his parents to become a musician.

“Our parents wanted us to have a musical education, but we weren’t forced to play anything in particular,” Diaz said. “We just went through the whole process of learning instruments. I started on violin. We used to do family concerts. We still do. It’s great.”

Both brothers graduated from the New England Conservatory of Music.

“When you have the viola and the cello, it’s silly that we don’t have a group,” Diaz said. “We thought we’d like to form a string quartet, but there are millions of string quartets. The music is about as good as it gets, but string trios are incredible, too. But there are not that many of them. We thought it would be a good way to cover all that repertory and not feel rehearsals were a problem.”

When the original trio was formed in 1987, it included violinist Jennie Shames. Roberto Diaz was then playing in the Boston Symphony; Andres Diaz was a Boston-based musician. The ensemble broke up shortly after when Roberto moved to the National Symphony in Washington, D.C.

It reunited at the invitation of Isaac Stern to play in the 1990-91 centennial season of Carnegie Hall. Violinist David Kim, now concertmaster with the Philadelphia Orchestra, was the third member. He was replaced by Andres Cardenes in 1996.

All three musicians maintain active separate careers. Roberto Diaz is now principal violist with the Philadelphia Orchestra. Andres Diaz teaches cello at Boston University and tours with Spoleto Festival USA Chamber Music. Cardenes is concertmaster of the Pittsburgh Symphony.

They turn to their managers to sort out logistical nightmares of getting them all together for concerts and tours.

“We give them our individual schedules at the beginning of the year and let them fight it out,” Andres Diaz said.

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As brothers, the Diazes bring a special sympathy to their music-making.

“We’ve been playing for so long, and we both spent so much time working with our father originally, who is such an incredible musician, we have an incredible sense of working together,” Diaz said.

But that doesn’t rule out close collaboration with Cardenes.

“We give the violinist a hard time because he’s Cuban. We’re Chilean. But he’s one of the classiest fiddle players today. He’s a gem to work with. When we read through some stuff with him to see about collaborating, Roberto said, ‘This is playing at a level that is just incredible. There’s not a note that’s not a gem.’ ”

Guest violinist James Buswell will join the trio for a performance of Smetana’s “From My Life.” (There’s that title advantage quartets get, again.) He will also play a Bach solo sonata.

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The trio will play--what else?--a trio by Hindemith.

Though they left when they were children, the Diaz brothers haven’t forgotten their homeland and go back frequently.

“There’s an enormous amount of talent in Chile,” Diaz said. “But I don’t think anyone could make a living as a musician there. It’s hard anywhere. But there are real potholes in the music scene in Chile. Musicians have to have a regular job on the side. The level of talent is high, but it’s hard for them to justify becoming musicians when they know there’s no living to be made in that field.

“So we enjoy going down there and helping the kids out. I try to bring talented Chilean kids up here and get connected. They feel a responsibility for their country. They’ve taken a lot back.”

Chris Pasles can be reached at (714) 966-5602 or by e-mail at chris.pasles@latimes.com.

SHOW TIMES

The Diaz Trio and guest violinist James Buswell will play works by Bach, Hindemith and Smetana, Irvine Barclay Theatre, 4242 Campus Drive. Thursday, 8 p.m. $17 to $28. (949) 854-4646. Program sponsored by the Laguna Chamber Music Society and the Philharmonic Society of Orange County.