Erika Nickrenz wasn't thinking about Beethoven's coattails or a seductive marketing plan when she suggested an Italian name for the all-female piano trio she founded in 1986 with cellist Sara Sant'Ambrogio and violinist Adela Pena.

She chose the name "Eroica Trio" for other reasons, says Nickrenz, the pianist for the internationally renowned trio headlining Saturday's first Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra concert of the season.

"The word 'eroica' has strong connotations," explains Nickrenz. "It means 'heroic' in Italian, but it has a feminine ring to it, with the 'a' on the end. And all three of our (first) names ended in 'a.'"

The group soon learned the name brought other trappings with it.

For one thing, it gave the trio instant name recognition. Even if they don't know classical music, many adults have heard of Ludwig van Beethoven's "Eroica" Symphony. Nickrenz knew the title, of course, but she wasn't trying to establish a Beethoven identity for the group, which plays a repertoire spanning 300 years of music.

The name brought immediate recognition, however.

"Before we even played our first concert, some people said, 'Oh, yeah, I've heard of you.' That gave us a little boost from the very beginning," says Nickrenz.

And some misspellings of "Eroica" have brought unexpected attention from people who continue to mistake the name for "erotica."

It happens all the time, says Nickrenz. "It's actually appeared in print a couple times. It's pretty embarrassing. Some people have shown up (for concerts or recitals) thinking it was a different kind of show."

Sex isn't part of their marketing plan. But the glamorous, sometimes sensuous photography used to promote this trio of attractive young women is definitely designed to seduce new audiences into the classical concert hall.

That's fine with Nickrenz, who likes toppling the stereotype "that classical music is stuffy, elderly, tired," she says.

"We enjoy being young women wearing beautiful dresses like you might wear to the Oscars. I think audiences get a kick out of going to our concerts, seeing what we're going to wear, what it's going to be like."

But none of that would matters if the performers weren't world-class.

The three founders, all award-winning performers in their own right, have performed together most of their lives. Nickrenz and Pena, the group's violinist, began playing together in New York at the age of 9. Three years later, Sant'Ambrogio joined them.

The three would go on to individual feats and honors, coming together later as the Eroica Trio.

In two decades the group has established an international reputation as chamber players, guest artists and Grammy-nominated recording artists.

After winning the Naumburg Award in 1991, the trio got a Lincoln Center debut and has toured the United States, Europe and Asia. They've played on ABC's "The View," CNN's "Showbiz Today" and many other broadcasts. They've been featured in magazines ranging from Elle, Glamour and Vanity Fair to Gramophone, Piano and Strad.

They have made recordings for Angel/EMI, including Beethoven's Triple Concerto, which they'll play Saturday with the Evansville Philharmonic. Susie Park, an international award-winning violinist from Australia, will substitute for Pena, who has been out all summer with a "fatigue-related injury," says Nickrenz.

Even though they've performed and recorded a wide-ranging repertoire, the triple concerto has become a signature piece for the trio, reinforcing the Beethoven connection.

"We first played it in 1991, and we've been really touring intensely with it since 1993," says Nickrenz.

"It's a showcase for us. We play all in a line, so the audience can see us playing equally."

She and Sant'Ambrogio look forward to Pena's return, but they've enjoyed bringing Park and others into the ensemble during Sant'Ambrogio's recovery, says Nickrenz.

"It's stimulating to play with the great players we've been playing with. New people bring new ideas and fresh approaches, and audiences have really responded."

http://www.courierpress.com/news/2006/sep/14/trios-name-rings-bells-and-brings-blushes/