11/24/04 The highly acclaimed Jacques Thibaud String Trio, will perform at Trinity Church of the Nazarene, 500 block East North Avenue, on at 7:30 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 4.

Margaret Louise Clark, spokeswoman for the Lompoc Concert Association, said she was excited about the chamber music group performing in Lompoc because they play by memory, without looking at any sheet music.

"This is almost unknown for a trio like that," Clark said of their trademark playing style. "They can look at each other and communicate the spirit of the music when they don't have their faces in the music," she said.

Founded at the Berlin School of Art in 1994, the Jacques Thibaud Trio has performed throughout Europe, Japan and North America. Violinist Bukhard Maiss, cellist Zhao Jing and viola player Phillip Douvier comprise the ensemble.

"They are internationally known performers," said Clark. "People should come see them because this is live music from young artists who have played on world renowned concert stages."

Maiss was born in Dusseldorf and is married to Japanese violinist Kayo Yamamoto. Douvier, born in Berlin, started playing the violin but later switched to the viola. Jing, who was born in Beijing, graduated from the Tokyo College of Music and the Karajan Academy in Berlin. She started playing the cello at the age of five.

The trio has garnered critical acclaim from the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times and the Washington Post. They have performed at Lincoln Center and the National Gallery among hundreds of other venues throughout the nation.

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"Their performances were spontaneous and commanding," said a critic in the New York Times. "This could be the first string trio in some time to have a major career."

The trio is so named because members wanted to salute the acclaimed, late French violinist Jacques Thibaud, born in 1880, who played in concerts all over the world and died in a plane crash at the age of 73.

The Dec. 4 concert is part of the 57th annual season of the Lompoc Concert Association. Three more concerts are scheduled for the spring.

Season subscriptions for the concert series will be available at the door. Adult subscriptions are $40, students are $19, and a family plan is available for $90.

Single tickets may be purchased for this concert at the door - $15 for adults and $7 for students.

For more information, call Vivian Dew at 733-4006, or Jean Jacoby at 736-8713.

Staff writer Neil Nisperos can be reached at 736-2313, Ext. 108, or by e-mail at nnisperos@pulitzer.net.