When it comes to
Dvorák's piano trios, for most listeners the Trio is the F minor, Op. 65, a darkly passionate work written in the composer's best mature manner, is a favorite. For most listeners, the earlier trios were a tyro's attempts and the later Dumky Trio efforts were stylized dances, and only the 40-minute, four-movement F minor Trio has the mastery of form and depth of expression to place it with the finest of
Dvorák's chamber works. When it comes to the same composer's piano quartets, however, the E flat Opus 87 is it. The early D major Opus 23 Quartet is a looser, more lyrical work, but the E flat major is a big, brawny work with a Lento that goes to the core of the composer's Bohemian soul.
Both works receive deeply expressive and extremely enthusiastic performances on this 2007 Bridge release. In the piano trio taped at the 1970 Marlboro Music Festival, violinist Glenn Dicterow, cellist
James Kreger, and pianist
David Golub turn in a performance that though sometimes a bit scrappy, still succeeds in expressing the work's passion and power. Even better is the Piano Quartet recorded at the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters in New York City in 1991. Joining Dicterow and
Kreger are violist
Karen Dreyfus and pianist Gerald Robbins, and they prove just as passionate, even more powerful, and much less scrappy, producing a full-bodied tone even in the quietest moments and a tight ensemble even in the most violent passages. Anyone who enjoys
Dvorák's chamber music will certainly enjoy this disc and these performance. The live sound of the piano trio is very live with some creaking and audible audience noise. The studio sound of the Piano Quartet is cool, close, and quite vivid.