Track Listing

Disc 1:

1. No. 1, Adagio
2. No. 2, Allegro molto
3. No. 3, Menuet
4. No. 1, Allegro moderato
5. No. 2, Menuet
6. No. 3, Andante con variazioni
7. No. 1, Allegro
8. No. 2, Adagio
9. No. 3, Menuetto
10. No. 1, Allegro
11. No. 2, Andante
12. No. 3, Allegro
13. No. 4, Menuetto
14. No. 5, Scherzo
15. No. 1, Moderato
16. No. 2, Menuet
17. No. 3, Presto

Disc 2:

1. No. 1, Moderato
2. No. 2, Menuet
3. No. 3, Finale. Allegro molto
4. No. 1, Allegro
5. No. 2, Menuet
6. No. 3, Adagio
7. No. 4, Finale. Presto
8. No. 1, Capriccio. Allegretto
9. No. 2, Menuet
10. No. 3, Finale. Allegro
11. No. 1, Allegro moderato
12. No. 3, Finale. Presto
13. No. 1, Allegro moderato
14. No. 2, Polones
15. No. 3, Finale. Allegro molto
16. No. 1, Allegro moderato
17. No. 2, Menuet
18. No. 3, Finale. Presto

Disc 3:

1. No. 1, Allegro moderato
2. No. 2, Menuet
3. No. 3, Finale. Allegro
4. No. 1, Allegro molto - No. 2, Andante
5. No. 1, Adagio - No. 2, Presto
6. No. 3, Menuet
7. No. 4, Finale
8. No. 1, Allegro moderato
9. No. 2, Menuetto. Allegretto
10. No. 3, Finale. Adagio con variazioni
11. No. 1, Adagio non tanto
12. No. 2, Allegro
13. No. 1, Vivace
14. No. 2, Tempo di menuetto

Disc 4:

1. No. 1, Andante con variazioni
2. No. 2, Andante
3. No. 3, Allegro assai
4. No. 1, Allegro moderato
5. No. 2, Tempo di menuetto
6. No. 1, Adagio
7. No. 2, Vivace
8. No. 1, Allegro moderato
9. No. 2, Presto
10. No. 1, Allegro moderato
11. No. 2, Tempo di menuetto

Disc 5:

1. No. 1, Allegro moderato
2. No. 2, Andante
3. No. 3, Rondo. Presto
4. No. 1, Andante
5. No. 2, Allegro spiritoso
6. No. 1, Allegro moderato
7. No. 2, Adagio
8. No. 3, Rondo. Vivace
9. No. 1, Allegro
10. No. 2, Andantino più tosto allegretto
11. No. 3, Vivace assai

Disc 6:

1. No. 1, Allegro
2. No. 2, Andante
3. No. 3, Finale. Allegro moderato
4. No. 1, Allegro
5. No. 2, Finale. Allegro moderato
6. No. 1, Andante
7. No. 2, Allegro
8. No. 1, Allegro moderato
9. No. 2, Andante
10. No. 3, Allegro
11. No. 1, Andante - Presto
12. No. 2, Adagio, ma non troppo
13. No. 3, Presto

Disc 7:

1. No. 1, Allegro
2. No. 2, Andante cantabile
3. No. 3, Finale. Allegro
4. No. 1, Adagio pastorale - Vivace assai
5. No. 2, Molto andante
6. No. 3, Finale. Presto
7. No. 1, Allegro moderato
8. No. 2, Poco adagio
9. No. 3, Fianle. Allegro
10. No. 1, Molto andante
11. No. 2, Adagio ma non troppo
12. No. 3, Fianle. Vivace

Disc 8:

1. No. 1, Allegro
2. No. 2, Andante
3. No. 3, Allegro, ma dolce
4. No. 1, Andante
5. No. 2, Poco adagio. Cantabile
6. No. 3, Rondo all'Ongarese. Presto
7. No. 1, Allegro
8. No. 2, Adagio cantabile
9. No. 3, Tempo di menuetto
10. No. 1, Andante cantabile
11. No. 2, Allegro

Disc 9:

1. No. 1, Allegro moderato
2. No. 2, Andante con moto
3. No. 3, Presto
4. No. 1, Allegro
5. No. 2, Andante
6. No. 3, Finale. Presto
7. No. 1, Allegro moderato
8. No. 2, Allegretto
9. No. 3, Finale. Allegro
10. No. 2, Andantino ed innocentemente
11. No. 3, Fianle; Allemande. Presto assai

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #77982 in Music
• Released on: 1997-09-16
• Number of discs: 9
• Format: Box set

Amazon.com
Haydn's piano trios deserve far more attention than they receive. As music lovers know, they are every bit as rewarding as his symphonies and string quartets, and also very numerous. They are not, however, true trios as we understand the term now. Essentially, Haydn took the sonata for violin and piano and added a cello part to strengthen the weak bass of contemporary pianos. This doesn't inhibit the quality of the music in any way, but it has prevented modern piano trios from taking them up since the cellist usually wants something more exciting to do. All praise, then, to the Beaux Arts Trio for understanding that musical quality is more important than instrumental display. --David Hurwitz

Amazon.com
This set, recorded during the 1970s, is still the only complete recording of Haydn's trios. (Imagine if there were only one recording of Mozart's or Beethoven's trios!) In this low-priced, space-saving format, it is one of the greatest chamber music bargains of all time. The great Beaux Arts Trio took its time recording the music, so every piece was thoroughly studied and absorbed before it was recorded. Some period instrument groups might be more stylish or authentic in a given trio, but this is still a splendid series of performances and your only chance to hear all of the music. Take the box on vacation; it doesn't use up much space! --Leslie Gerber

Customer Reviews

TRIOS TO TREASURE
One might suspect that 43 piano trios are a tad much; as far as I'm concerned, it's 43 too few. There is not one trio here that will not delight or please by its melody or invention. Nothing is stagnant or academic--- it's all sheer pleasure, hours and hours worth. And, trio after trio, we find Haydn consistently ingenious, never dull, never boring. And there is so much here to revel in, too. Perky allegros, haunting andantes, witty prestos. This is Haydn at his most endearing and accessible, no doubt about it. But, of course, those of us who love and admire Haydn's chamber music already know this. The Beaux Arts Trio have made these Haydn works their own, period. It is a landmark reissue in every sense. The analogue transfers, as well, are immaculate, warm, full-bodied and with remarkable presence.

Pick of the Litter
This remarkable 9 CD set clearly disproves Schumann's comment about Haydn [an old family friend whom one receives gladly and respectfully but who has nothing new to tell us]. I am not surprised that it received Gramophone's Recording of the Year in 1979, nor that it's listed as one of the top 100 classical music recordings of all time

The set roughly divides into 3 groups of 3 CDs each.

The first group includes pre-1780's material; these are basically accompanied piano sonatas. The next group includes the 1780's trios; now the violin is getting some independence. [The cello is pretty-much locked to the piano bass throughout.] The final group is the 1790's trios: now there is a real conversation between piano and violin. As a group, they are simply brilliant, especially the slow movements.

The Beaux Arts Trio's performance is first rate, and the recording quality is excellent. I admit to being a piano trio fan, and in my view these surpass Beethoven's and equal the best from Mozart and Schubert (albeit in a different style). My modest CD collection contains pretty much all of the chamber music of Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven and Schubert, but this set is definitely the pick of the litter for enjoyable evening listening.

A Classic Recording! A Stunning Bargain! A Gem!
All too often, among the great triumvirate of High Classical composers, Haydn is given short-shrift, and many who love Mozart and Beethoven often know almost nothing of Haydn's music. Perhaps the "jolly Papa Haydn" image gets in the way. But Haydn is the true peer of his two younger disciples, as they themselves would have affirmed. And indeed did affirm-- Mozart quite openly and Beethoven, during his youth, grudgingly (though in later life his appreciation of his old master was expressed much more freely). Even Haydn lovers often know only the symphonies, string quartets, oratorios, a piano sonata or two, and the Trumpet concerto. What a revelation then are these trios! As the Amazon reviewer pointed out, the role of the cello is to enrich the bass line (though it also sings at times with the violin); the combination gave a tonal palette with which Haydn's incredibly fertile invention ran rampant! Even the early trios are delightful; and the later ones are often unqualified masterpieces. The well-known Gypsy rondo, for example, is boisterous Haydn at his best; the wonderful C Major Trio, Hoboken 27, ends with a sonata-allegro finale of dazzling virtuosity, including a thrilling development section; Hoboken 28 in E Major is outstanding in many ways -- the piano in the first movement mimicking the pizzicato in the strings; the second movement is truly remarkable: a chaconne or passacaglia (a Baroque form) yet displaying Classical period melodic and tonal structure, and finally a prescience of Romantic period climax. It is dark and haunting and altogether original. And at the end of the carefree finale, there is a reminiscence of this passacaglia-- years before Beethoven's Fifth or Ninth symphonies made the procedure mainstream. The trios are remarkably individuated and always engaging. And this recording! Magisterial. The rich tones of the instruments fit the music beautifully. Other trios have tried it since but none have equalled, let alone surpassed this recording. (People addicted to the acidic and grating sound of "period" performances may balk, but if Haydn himself were here to choose I think he'd choose this record hands down!) The Penguin Guide beautfifully summed up this 9-disc set: "Here is music that is sane and intelligent; a balm to the spirit in a troubled world." And "Not may recordings can be hailed as a classic in the sense of the Schnabel recordings of the Beethoven sonatas -- this can." If you love the Classic period, if you love chamber music, if you love beautiful music in general, this will be a wonderful acquisition!