Search - Ludwig van Beethoven, The Leopold Trio, Marianne Thorsen (violin) :: Beethoven - Three String Trios, Op. 9 - No. 1 in G Major; No. 2 in D Major; No. 3 in C minor - The Leopold Trio

There is something exhilarating about hearing sheer instrumental perfection on this level. The Leopold Trio plays with the kind of precision we hear from, for example, the Emerson String Quartet. At the same time, as good as this playing is, there is still something missing. The competing performances by the Mutter-Giuranna-Rostropovich trio on Deutsche Grammophon offer a lot more punch in this music than the Leopold Trio expresses with its relatively restrained expression and dynamics. Since the M-G-R ensemble doesn't have the same level of knife-edge precision as the Leopold Trio, there's something to be said for both performances. But Beethoven probably would have preferred the group with wider dynamics. Hyperion's program notes are surprisingly brief and superficial. --Leslie Gerber