MADELEINE FESTIVAL: PARADIGM TRIO, Cathedral of the Madeleine, Sunday.

The Paradigm Trio was formed three years ago with local artists Kelly Parkinson, violin; Joel Rosenberg, viola; and Jed Moss, piano, and made its debut at a Madeleine Festival of the Arts and Humanities concert in 2001. Since then, the trio has become a permanent fixture on the Salt Lake music scene, giving numerous concerts throughout the year.

Sunday evening, the threesome returned to the Cathedral of the Madeleine, where it all began for them, and played a thoroughly enjoyable program that explored dance in classical music, culminating in the tangos of Astor Piazzolla.

The bulk of the concert was devoted to Piazzolla's music. The Argentinean composer, who died in 1992, elevated the tango to an art form, transforming it from its stylized form of a century ago into a medium that expressed the feelings and emotions of the country's working class. And in that guise, he brought it into the concert hall.

Piazzolla's music exhibits a wealth of invention. He was an incredibly imaginative composer who could seemingly express anything through the tango. In this music you hear the anguish, hopes, prayers and yearnings of the Argentinean soul, expressed in terms that are at once sensual and innocent, suggestive and poignant. This is music from the heart.

Parkinson, Rosenberg and Moss played this music fabulously on Sunday, giving a performance that captured the essence of Piazzolla's tangos; it was compellingly vivid, descriptive and dynamic.

The second half of the concert focused entirely on Piazzolla's music. The trio opened that part of the program with two shorter tangos — "Death of an Angel" and one of the composer's most famous pieces, "Oblivion."

The two works stand at opposite ends. "Death of an Angel" is almost brash in its restless energy, while "Oblivion" is enticingly sultry and deliciously erotic.

The major work on the second half was Piazzolla's "The Four Seasons." In it, the composer ingeniously describes the seasons — from the lushness of summer to the warm hued tones of autumn, the bleakness of winter and the richly tinted colors of spring. And the Paradigm Trio captured perfectly the mood and character of each with its expressive and eloquent playing.

The first half of the program was somewhat different, featuring, as it did, either Rosenberg playing solo or partnered with Moss.

Rosenberg started the concert alone with three dances from the 14th and 16th centuries, following those with the Gigue from J.S. Bach's Suite in D minor, originally for solo cello.

After Rosenberg and Moss played the Siciliano from Bach's Sonata No. 4 in C minor, originally written for violin and harpsichord, and the Aria from Heitor Villa-Lobos' "Bachianas Brasilieras" No. 5, arranged by William Primrose, the two artists devoted the rest of this half to the tango.

Rosenberg and Moss played the jaunty, rhythmic and casually dissonant "Candombe de la Solapa" by the contemporary Argentinean composer Jorge Mockert, before playing the charming Tango from Samuel Barber's ballet "Souvenirs."

The first half ended with the tango "Whatever Lola Wants Lola Gets," from Richard Adler's "Damn Yankees," and Piazzolla's utterly beautiful "Ave Maria."

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E-mail: ereichel@desnews.com