Cellist Ella van Poucke offers Rachmaninov's monumental Cello Sonata, two very early short pieces and the first Piano Trio. An added bonus is the addition of a piece dedicated to her by Ukrainian composer Maxim Shalygin.

This is the much awaited follow-up to Ella's Schumann debut (CC72871), that was acclaimed by the worldwide press. Gramophone: "this is an impressive album from a soloist whose performances I look forward to hearing more of in the future."

Rachmaninov's ten chamber works, two of them left incomplete, all date from his late teens or early twenties. The 2 Pieces, op.2 - Prélude and Danse orientale for cello and piano - date from 1891-2.

The most widely performed of Rachmaninov's chamber compositions is the Cello Sonata. Rachmaninov completed this sonata in November 1901. On 2 December the composer and the celebrated cellist Anatoly Brandukov, to whom the work is dedicated, gave the premiere in Moscow. Rachmaninov's sonata is a gem of the cello-sonata repertoire.

The first of Rachmaninov's two works entitled Trio élégiaque is believed to date from 1890-1. The manuscript bears the dates 18-21 January 1892, but it has been suggested that this probably refers to a late revision which he made before the premiere that month. Though the work of a teenager, this single-movement trio has some characteristic touches which anticipate Rachmaninov's mature style, while the confident piano-writing reflects his burgeoning virtuosity The influence of Tchaikovsky upon Rachmaninov's trio is evident.

The Ukrainian-Dutch composer Maxim Shalygin was born in Kamianske in 1985. He composed his Tristissima for Ella van Poucke. Shalygin has commented: "Certainly this is an unacceptable beauty today, one that can be on the borderline of vulgarity, while at the same time opening us up to some feelings that we often shy away from ourselves."