Founded over 60 years ago by Menahem Pressler, Daniel Guilet and Bernard Greenhouse, the Beaux Arts Trio performed and recorded exclusively for Philips Classics until 1995. Through the years, the Trio has maintained its freshness and preserved its distinctive musical heritage while the membership has changed. The Beaux Arts Trio is considered by many as having set the standard for performance of piano trio literature for all future generations. These three boxes offer a more accessible way to enjoy their complete cycles of Beethoven, Mozart and Haydn piano trios, previously collected together in Decca’s 60-CD Complete Philips Recordings.
Swept along by the spirit of the day, Romantic chamber music came to be defined by an increasingly important role of the piano within the ensemble: the reign of the string quartet was eventually brought to an end, making way in particular for the piano trio with violin and cello. Throughout the Romantic repertoire, many works bear witness to the richness of this genre. The Second Piano Trio, Op.26 by Felix Mendelssohn and the Third Trio, Op.26 by Edouard Lalo are of course only two examples of the genre, but undeniably splendid specimens, brought to light in this recording.
There's beauty aplenty in Parnassus' playing… MDG's recording, by placing the piano (which sounds wonderful throughout) slightly back in the acoustic, achieves a believable and wholly satisfying instrumental balance.
Founded 60 years ago by Menahem Pressler, Daniel Guilet and Bernard Greenhouse, the Beaux Arts Trio performed and recorded exclusively for Philips Classics until 1995. Celebrated for their outstanding chamber-music qualities, the Beaux Arts are one of the greatest ensembles in the history of recorded music. This special 60CD box set includes their extensive discography on Philips Classics and encompasses almost the entire piano trio literature.
There's beauty aplenty in Parnassus' playing… MDG's recording, by placing the piano (which sounds wonderful throughout) slightly back in the acoustic, achieves a believable and wholly satisfying instrumental balance.