Here’s an opportunity to hear two cornerstones of the chamber repertoire performed by one of today’s leading ensembles, the Gutman Trio. The music in question: Brahms’ First and Third Piano Trios, works which, separated by 33 years, effectively date from the extremes of the composer’s career. A chronological gap such as this automatically invites judgement on stylistic development, and indeed No.1 in B major is a youthful work, one which succeeds in capturing the brave, witty and passionate nature of its fictional dedicatee, E.T.A Hoffmann’s Kapellmeister Kreisler. Its evident sophistication, however, is the fruit of a more mature composer, for Brahms – dissatisfied with the trio he had composed as a 20-year-old – decided to rework the music some 40 years later, seven years after writing his final effort in the form. As a result, this release offers a fascinating juxtaposition of Brahms the young composer and Brahms the master, one that isn’t just limited to a comparison of the two works contained on the CD. Founded in 2000 by Natalia Gutman, a former pupil of Mstislav Rostropovich and who often performed with the piano titan Sviatoslav Richter, the Gutman Trio made its highly successful debut in the international Oleg Kagan Music Festival in Kreuth, Bavaria, and has been thrilling audiences across the world ever since. The group has appeared at such prestigious venues at Geneva’s Victoria Hall and the concert halls of the Moscow Conservatory and St Petersburg Philharmonic. This release marks their first recording for Brilliant Classics. Other information: - Recorded 2012, Muzichi Studio, Kiev, Ukraine. The first of a series of recordings with the Gutman Trio! - This recording presents the CD debut on Brilliant Classics of the Gutman Trio, named after Natalia Gutman, world famous cellist, one of the few surviving of the generation of 20th century soviet musicians, like Richter, Gilels, Kogan, Kagan, Rostropovich and Oistrakh. - For their debut CD they chose two of the cornerstones of the romantic piano trio repertoire, the first and third piano trio by Brahms. The first trio Op. 8 is a gorgeous work from Brahms’ early years, brimming with youthful passion and vitality; the third trio is in C minor mood, dark, grim and powerful. - Notes on the music and artist biographies in both English and German.