Dancla 6 Petits Trios Op. 99 for 3 Violins and Piano - Book 1

Dancla's Six Petits Trios faciles et concertants, Op. 99 is a collection that has been doing useful work in violin studios for well over a century. Book 1 presents the first three trios for three violins, each with two contrasting movements, at around ABRSM Grade 3 — giving early to intermediate players their first proper chamber music experience in repertoire that is genuinely enjoyable to rehearse and perform.

The writing stays in first to third position throughout, which means the technical demands are manageable enough for students to focus on what chamber music actually requires: listening to the other parts, matching tone and rhythm, and shaping musical phrases together. The three parts are each interesting in their own right, rather than one melody with two accompaniment lines.

Trios 2 and 3 both borrow themes from the classical repertoire — the second movement of Trio No. 2 is built on a theme from Handel's Judas Maccabaeus, and Trio No. 3 closes with a melody from Mozart's Marriage of Figaro. For a young player, recognising those tunes in the context of playing them together with two other violinists is a genuinely worthwhile moment.

At around twelve minutes for all three trios, the collection works well as a complete studio recital programme, or individual trios can be drawn out for concert use. Dancla was professor of violin at the Paris Conservatory, and the pedagogical intelligence shows: each movement is different enough to keep students engaged, and the technical demands are placed where the music needs them.

See and hear the difference

Check the score and parts preview images above, then watch the complete score video below. They'll give you a clear picture of the engraving quality and overall difficulty before you buy.

Key features

• Instrumentation: 3 Violins (Violin I, Violin II, Violin III)
• Difficulty: approximately ABRSM Grade 3 (first to third position)
• Duration: approximately 12 minutes (all three trios)
• Contents: Trio No. 1 (Moderato; Minuetto Allegretto), Trio No. 2 in G major (Moderato cantabile; Thème d'Haendel, Maestoso), Trio No. 3 (Moderato cantabile; Duo de Mozart, Andante cantabile)
• Format: PDF download, full score and all three individual parts

Who it's for

Suits a violin teacher looking for engaging chamber repertoire at Grade 3 level, a studio group preparing for an informal concert or recital, or any three violinists at early to intermediate level wanting a first experience of playing together in a proper musical context.