Following his early elimination from the “Prix de Rome,” the sought-after award for composition students at the Paris Conservatoire, Chausson withdrew to the country in summer 1881 and began composing this ambitious work - out of defiance, so to speak. During his lifetime the trio remained an insider's tip amongst those close to his teacher César Franck. It was only after its posthumous publication that it was performed more frequently and was gradually recognized as being one of the best chamber music works of his time. Closely based on Franck's principle of the cyclic interleaving of all motives, it still has dark and melancholy inflections all of its own. The Henle Urtext edition is the first critical edition and a welcome addition to their collection of French music.

“A dark, sombre quality pervades much of this elegaic trio. Flashes of turbulence and passion in the witty scherzo and finale and the many recurring themes reflect Franck's influence.” –Strings magazine