Review of Yo-Yo Ma, Leonidas Kavakos and Emanuel Ax – Beethoven for Three

The brilliant trio, consisting of Leonidas Kavakos, Yo-Yo Ma and Emanuel Ax, have already recorded the Second, Fifth and Sixth Pieces, and now the Fourth is another Beethoven symphony arranged for piano trio. Even if Shay Woessner's original score has been reduced to the stem, this chamber music version certainly has its charm: although the pianist finds it difficult to vibrate over and over again in imitation of the orchestral tutti, the three men's playing is generally enjoyable with obvious agility And the beautiful voice. A real enrichment of the trio's repertoire. In contrast, the Piano Trio No. 7 in B minor, Op.97 “The Archduke” sounds rather archaic. The interaction is perfect and the voice has a noble sound. But overall, the rhythms are very measured, many accents are hinted at, but the strings are often excessively vibrating. There are many more exciting recordings out there.

Beethoven for three
Beethoven: Symphony No. 4 and Piano Trio No. 7 “The Archduke”

Leonidas Kavakos (violin), Yo-Yo Ma (cello), Emanuel Ax (piano)
Sony classic

Yo-yo-ma

Whether on Sesame Street, at the White House, or in the world's most famous concert halls – Yo-Yo Ma doesn't just inspire classical audiences with his cello playing. Born in Paris in 1955, he is the son of a singer and…continue