Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)
Piano Trio No. 39 in G major, Hob.XV:25 ‘Gypsy Rondo’ (1795)
Piano Trio No. 44 in E major, Hob.XV:28 (1797)
Piano Trio No. 17 in F major, Hob.XV:2 (1784)
Piano Trio No. 40 in F-sharp minor, Hob.XV:26 (1795)
Piano Trio No. 26 in C minor, Hob.XV:13 (1789)
Guarneri Trio Prague
rec. 2021, Studio ArcoDiva, Jaromírova, Prague
Praga Digitals PRD 250 423 [70]
On this recently released Praga Digitals album the Guarneri Trio Prague has selected five of Haydn’s piano trios. Surprisingly, it’s the first recording they have devoted to Haydn’. Included on the album is the celebrated piano trio No. 39 dubbed the ‘Gypsy Rondo’.
Founded in 1986, the trio is still going strong with its original line-up and this album was recorded to mark its thirty-fifth anniversary. Their ensemble name Guarneri (Guarnerius) is taken from the renowned Cremona family of string-instrument-makers. Many will know their award winning recordings which include the complete piano trios of Beethoven, Mendelssohn, Shostakovich, Schubert, Brahms and Mozart on the Praga label and on Supraphon the piano trios of Dvorak.
The prolific Haydn wrote some hundred and eight symphonies and sixty-eight string quartets, and it is easy to fall into the trap of undervaluing his large group of piano trios. Eminent Haydn scholar H. C. Robbins Landon gives the number of surviving piano trios as forty-three and in all likelihood others are missing. I came to these works quite late and hearing them for the first time felt like a major discovery. Sometimes referred to as partitas and divertimentos, the early keyboard trios date from around 1755-60, while the mid-to-late works were written 1784-97, a period that includes Haydn’s two trips to London. They were first published as ‘Sonatas for forte-piano with accompaniment for violin and cello’ with the keyboard as the dominant instrument; around this time the harpsichord was progressively being replaced by the fortepiano.
The Guarneri has chosen five piano trios spanning some thirteen years. The is No. 17 in F major circa 1784 while the latest, No. 44 in E major, dates from 1797. Haydn’s genius has ensured that they not only have an abundance of melodies but are notably inventive in their harmonic daring. Their broad characteristics range from the ardently rhythmic to the insouciant and more intimate.
One of the most famous piano trios in the whole repertoire is the captivating No. 39 in G major. It is nicknamed the ‘Gypsy Rondo’ on account of its Finale: Rondo all’ongarese (Rondo in Hungarian, or gypsy, style). Each of the trios on the album has real appeal and I never tire of it. It opens with the charming Andante movement, a theme and variations that the Guarneri performs with breathtaking sensitivity. Beautifully played, the middle movement, marked Poco adagio with its undemanding mood, conveys a sense of serenity. In the justly celebrated Presto finale, the Guarneri plays with highly rhythmic, foot-tapping exuberance. I have heard the undeniably popular Rondo all’ongarese played as an encore piece more than once in chamber recitals. The Piano Trio No. 26 in C minor, too, is an admirable mid-to-late work from 1789; the Guarneri plays it with verve and sensitivity, conferring a strong personality upon this two movement score.
Throughout this album one senses how much the seasoned Guarneri savour Haydn’s music. Conspicuous are an uncommonly strong unity of purpose combine with playing of satisfying expressiveness. Sound engineer Václav Roubal has excelled, providing vividly clear, well-balanced sound. There is also a helpful essay by Nicholas Durney.
A number of new recordings of Haydn’s piano trios marked the two hundredth anniversary of Haydn’s death in 2009. Of course, the most famous ‘classic’ recording of his complete (43) piano trios is from the Beaux Arts Trio, recorded in 1971-78 and in 1996 reissued in a 9 CD box on Philips, a set that remains indispensable – but these marvellous accounts by the Guarneri are of equal merit.
Michael Cookson
Help us financially by purchasing from
Guarneri Trio Prague:
Čeněk Pavlík (‘Zimbalist’ violin by Guarneri del Gesù, 1735) from Luigi Tarisio collection.
Marek Jerie (Andrea Guarneri cello, 1684)
Ivan Klánský (piano)
