Piano Trio No. 1, op. 8; Piano Trio No. 2 in E minor, op. 67; Schnittke: Trio for violin, cello and piano.
Trio Bamberg: Jewgeni (Yevgeny) Schuk (violin), Stephan Gerlinghaus (cello), Robert Benz (piano).
Thorofon CTH 2397. DDD. TT 64:51.
Recorded Bayrischen Rundfunk, MSH, kleiner Saal, Studio Franken, Munich, 8-10 June 1998.

Piano Trio No. 1, op. 8; Piano Trio No. 2 in E minor, op. 67; Bloch: Three Nocturnes; Martin: Trio on Irish Folk Tunes.
Grieg Trio: Solve Sigerland (violin), Ellen Margrete Flesjo (cello), Vebjorn Anvik (piano).
Simax PSC 1147. -D. TT 63:34.
Recorded Lommedalen Kirke, Norway, 12, 15-18 June 1998.

Piano Trio No. 1, op. 8[a]; Piano Trio No. 2 in E minor, op. 67[b]; Seven Songs to words (Seven Romances on Poems) of Alexander Blok, op. 127[c].
Bartos Trio: Galina Danilova (violin), Csaba Bartos (cello), Irina Ivanickaia (piano), Maria Aszodi (soprano)[c].
Hungaroton Classic HCD 31780. DDD. TT 64:28.
Recorded Hungaroton Studio, Hungary, 29 May - 2 June 1997[a,b]; 11-14 September 1997[c].

Piano Trio No. 2 in E minor, op. 67; Tchaikovsky: Piano Trio in A minor, op. 50; Peter Kiesewetter: Tango pathetique.
Gidon Kremer (violin), Mischa Maisky (cello), Martha Argerich (piano).
Deutsche Grammophon 289 459 326-2. DDD. TT 79:21.
Recorded live Sumida Triphony Hall, Tokyo, May 1998.

Readers may be surprised to learn that Opus 8 had to wait until 1982 to appear on record, owing to the disappearance of Bars 257 to 278, which Shostakovich never saw fit to rewrite. Only in 1981 were the missing parts restored by Boris Tishchenko. The notes to the Grieg Trio's Simax release point out that the Oslo Trio, who handled the recording première, were also Norwegian, but modestly neglect to mention that their LP bore the Simax badge (PS 1014; CD reissue PSC 1014).

This latest Simax recording of op. 8 is marked by a sprightly bounce to convey Shostakovich's more modernistic pages, and an innocent sweetness for bars in which the young composer surely had his beloved Tatyana Glivenko, the trio's dedicatee, in mind. Still, there is a coolness to this performance that I find underplays the work's emotive potential.

A much more emotionally fraught interpretation of Trio No. 1 can be heard in the Bamberg Trio's unusual take, with eerily deliberate phrasing of passages that others treat as Impressionistic fancy, and a panic-stricken dash through the manic second theme. Theirs is an unsettling account that is apt to leave the listener on edge. The same features make it an interesting alternative version for anyone wishing to expand their view of this early work. Be warned, though, of the presence of significant huffing and puffing from the stage, plus what sounds like an editing hiccup at 8:29.

A healthier, more conventional recital comes from the Bartos Trio, who invest their playing with more passion than either alternative considered here. Where the Bambergs were breathless, the Bartos are impetuous. Where the Grieg Trio served up misty nostalgia, the Hungarians deliver bittersweet longing. Of the three versions under consideration here, the Bartos' approach seems to sit most naturally with the work, yielding an engaging conversation with the teenaged author.

All-star teams have not fared as well as one might expect in the Second Piano Trio; witness the dismally inaccurate and superficial entry from Isaac Stern, Yo-Yo Ma and Emanuel Ax on CBS Masterworks MK 44664. I was expecting more success from the new DG entry, as I've greatly enjoyed Martha Argerich's Beethoven and Bach sonata performances with Gidon Kremer and Mischa Maisky individually. The present disc, however, would not be a good illustration of the buzzword "synergy". It is a decidedly quirky reading, with hints of syncopation that never quite make it and that leave the impression of poor coordination between the three musicians. More than once I found myself wondering if this were intended to be a crossover production. The booklet notes do little to suggest otherwise, devoting two pages to the music, but a breathless three to an article about the trio's adventures in Tokyo, written in a style more appropriate to coverage of a Spice Girls tour.

Technically, Argerich is the weakest link in the chain, clanking out her notes without finesse. Maisky and Kremer also have their crises; to give just two of many examples, the cello's voice cracks at Fig. 4+3/1:56 in the first movement, and a short while later, Kremer's intonation wobbles at Fig. 26+1/7:20. Such failings would be easier to overlook if one sensed a deep emotional connection in this performance, but that too is lacking. Crucially, this Largo gives no sense of the depth of grief that Shostakovich must have felt at the loss of his dearest friend, Ivan Sollertinsky, the work's dedicatee. The overall feeling I come away with is that this team have had too little time to digest this opus individually and to rehearse it together.

Though far more cohesive than the Argerich-Kremer-Maisky performance, little need be said about the Grieg Trio's rendition of Trio No. 2, which is tediously mechanical, with leaden phrasing throughout. All players sound as if they are on auto-pilot. Matters are not helped by Simax's congested recording, which results in the instruments coming across as rather wheezy.

The Second Trio fares far better in the hands of the Bamberg Trio, who instil greater dynamic contrast and emotional engagement. Like the Vienna Piano Trio's version on Nimbus (NI 5572) that I lauded in DSCH No. 11, this reading is shrouded in darkness, though here the gloom is more immediately threatening and less mournful. Listen, for example, to the aggressive way in which the Bambergs tear through the second movement. It is an impressive display, and there are many fine turns of phrase within it, but on first audition it struck me as self-consciously virtuosic. Repeated hearings convince me that its violence is a well-judged counterpoint to the third movement, which the Bambergs present more as an entreaty than a lament, in a frail and vulnerable voice.

In terms of its sense of present danger, the Bamberg's take on the final movement is consistent with the preceding sections. There is no merriment whatsoever in its Jewish dance motifs, which were inspired by Shostakovich's horror upon learning that SS guards had forced death camp inmates to dance beside their own graves.

Intentionally or not, the Bambergs graphically conjure up this sickening image in the mind's eye of anyone aware of this explanation for the appearance of such disquieting Jewish themes in an opus dedicated to a non-Jewish friend who died of heart failure. The technical bases for this impression are the Bambergs' rushed tempo, which sounds forced, especially as they enter the last movement, and their abbreviated, seemingly apprehensive bowing.

If the discography for Trio No. 2 were not so glutted, the Bartos Trio's performance would be highly recommendable. Their playing is solid and accurate, though not clinically so, painting a wide spectrum of colours. What prevents me from ranking their account higher is that their recital does not click as securely as with the Vienna or Bamberg Trios. One senses a certain lack of long-distance perspective. Still, the Bartos Trio respond sensitively to the moment-by-moment ebb and flow of mood, and I imagine that few listeners would find them actively disappointing.

Turning now to couplings, Argerich-Kremer-Maisky supply an idiosyncratically jazzy take on the Tchaikovsky Trio, plus their concert encore, Tango pathetique by Peter Kiesewetter (about which the notes say nothing - it lasts just over two minutes and sounds exactly like its title).

Simax offer attractive, atmospheric trio pieces from two Swiss composers, Ernest Bloch and Frank Martin, written within about a year of Shostakovich's First Trio. Bloch's Three Nocturnes, with its post-Ravellian soundscape, is a more suitable match to Shostakovich's Opus 8 than the folkloric, jazzy Martin work. Both are far too lightweight, however, to counterbalance Shostakovich's Second Trio.

In contrast, Thorofon give us the uncompromising two-movement work that Schnittke wrote for string trio in 1985 and arranged for piano trio in 1992, thus replicating exactly the Vienna Piano Trio's programme on Nimbus. As excellent (because disturbing) as is the Vienna team's performance of the Schnittke, the Bamberg Trio manage an even more other-worldly depiction. The Bamberg's first movement is downright spooky: a tour through a haunted house. It flows more freely too, coming in over a minute sooner than on Nimbus, leaving the impression of a clearer grasp of an overall structure - but then, the Vienna Piano Trio's more disjointed approach is undoubtedly intentional. In the second movement, the Bamberg Trio's legato playing is less convincing, the Vienna Trio's spikier style sounding more authentic.

The line-up on Hungaroton is cleverly arranged to offer trio works from Shostakovich's early, middle and late periods, consummated by a fine recital of the Blok Romances for piano trio and soprano. Maria Aszodi has a rich, earthy voice that is equally adept at belting out the terrible prophecy of Gamayun and crooning the romantic reverie of The city sleeps. Coordination between trio and soprano is excellent, not just in terms of timing, but also emotional inflection.

Deutsche Grammophon's live recording is decent, though the strings sound a bit tinny. As mentioned above, Simax's acoustics are unflattering. Thorofon's are not demonstration quality either, reverberating during forte playing, though I hasten to add that they work wonderfully in the Largo of the Second Trio. Hungaroton manage a more open sound with pleasing stereo imaging.

The Vienna Piano Trio's disc remains essential, but if you have the space, consider adding the Bamberg Trio's entry to your collection, and don't shy away from the Bartos Trio if their programme appeals.

W. Mark Roberts
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DSCH No. 13.
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