Three is the magic number tonight at Schwab Auditorium.

The chamber music group Beaux Arts Trio will perform pieces by three famous artists: Beethoven, Shostakovich and Mendelssohn. The trio is an ensemble featuring a pianist, violinist and cellist.

"We present a regular chamber music series of four performances, so it's part of our regular programming," Laura Sullivan, spokeswoman for the Center for the Performing Arts, said. "Every year, we try to bring the best chamber music artists that are touring and are available to us and present them in our excursion series. This is the final event of that this year and also the final event of our season."

George Trudeau, director of the Center for the Performing Arts, selects programming for the music series, Sullivan said.

"I thought it would be great to have a piano trio to balance the others in the series," Trudeau said. "We try to get the best we can. [The Beaux Arts Trio] is certainly right up there at the pinnacle. They haven't been here since 1993, so we look forward to having them back here."

The Beaux Arts Trio debuted in 1955. It has played annual concerts at respected establishments, such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City and the Library of Congress. It celebrated its 50th year in the 2004-05 season.

Menahem Pressler, world-renowned pianist for the trio received most of his musical training in Israel.

"[Pressler] is the original founding member of the Beaux Arts Trio and is still performing with them," Trudeau said. "[Pressler is] probably one of the most revered pianists in the world today."

Two other distinguished individuals make up the trio: Daniel Hope is the group's violinist, and Antonio Meneses is its cellist.

"They are, I guess you could say, the dean of piano trios," Trudeau said.

Graduate music students will have a chance to interact with the trio before the performance. This opportunity allows students to make a nice connection with the ensemble, Trudeau said.

"That's just a marvelous opportunity for them," he said.

Charles Youmans, associate professor of music, is a music historian who has taught at Penn State for seven years. He teaches introductory courses and graduate seminars in music history, he said.

"[The Beaux Arts Trio] is one of the finest chamber groups in the world, period. Among piano trios, there's no question that they're at the top of the list," Youmans said. "They play with such color and energy that it's just wonderful to hear, and it's rare to hear people that can play at that level."

Youmans said his students are eager to explore different types of music.

He said he will attend the Beaux Arts Trio's performance.

"They're just wonderful musicians. If you want to hear great musicians play great music, then this is the concert to come to," he said.