Auerbach Weinberg Dvorak Trio Zimbalist

This two-CD set pulls together the Borodin Trio's recordings of all four of Dvorák's piano trios into one package. These were originally recorded between 1983 and 1992, and despite the different dates, there is a consistency of sound in them. That sound has an ambient coldness that isn't warmed up by the music, and it balances the instruments almost equally, to the point where when the piano has the melody it doesn't stick out much from the violin and cello. It leaves the impression that hearing the Borodin Trio live would be the best way to fully appreciate its performance, because even if it were in a bad sounding hall, you would still be able to see their reactions to the music and each other.

After their three recordings dedicated to Dvořák’s Piano Trios No. 3 and No. 4 (the ‘Dumky’), as well as his First and Second Piano Quartets, the Piano Quintets and the Bagatelles, Omri Epstein, Mathieu van Bellen and Ori Epstein conclude their complete cycle of the Czech composer’s chamber music with piano with his first two piano trios: the bond of sympathy between the artists becomes evident as they communicate boththeir passion for this repertoire and their pleasure in making music together.

The Beaux Arts, late 1980s-style, is recognizably the same creature as it was at the start of the decade, or even two decades ago. The fingers of Menahem Pressler still twinkle away, the violin and cello exchange angst for mischief in volatile and ebullient alternation. The most obvious comparison for their latest release is the identical Dvorak/Mendelssohn coupling of 1980 on Pearl. Then Daniel Guilet was the violinist, and his comparatively small voice and old-style sweetness make their mark: this Dvorak is a small-scale, kid-glove performance, with the gentle acoustic recessing the violin even further and softening the high-spirited Dumka episodes.