Beethoven: Trios op.11, 38
Filipe Pinto-Ribeiro (piano), Pascal Moraguès (clarinet), Adrian Brendel (cello) (Paraty)
(scroll down for English review)
貝多芬兩首單簧管、大提琴及鋼琴的三重奏作品，即使單簧管部份，樂譜已附有小提琴的譜（即是可以用小提琴代替單簧管），但現在甚少用小提琴來演奏，近來貝多芬鋼琴三重奏的全集錄音，往往都會跳過這兩首作品，包括最近巴倫邦父子及Kian Soltani的全集錄音。
軌一至三的「街頭歌曲」三重奏有那個名稱，是因為第三樂章是以一首當時在維也納街頭流行的意大利文歌曲《我去上班之前》去做主題的變奏曲，其實不只是第三樂章，第二樂章也是很有歌唱的味道，因為它就像歌劇詠嘆調般脫俗，於是一雅一俗互相對照，實質在貝多芬手上，兩者可以同等優雅。
軌四至七的三重奏是《七重奏》（作品20）的改編版本，原曲在當時十分受歡迎，變成三重奏之後，雖然將樂器組合及色彩壓縮了，但又不見得會變得單調。這個六樂章作品雖無小夜曲之名，但有小夜曲之實，但就如之前的「街頭歌曲」三重奏，真的不要小看貝多芬這些通俗作品，他想寫得通俗、流行時，也會比別人更加優勝。只聽貝多芬最英雄，或者最深邃（例如後期作品）的人，在我心目中不見得很懂得欣賞音樂。
作品以外，這個演奏我覺得單簧管及大提琴找到絕佳的平衡，兩者並不是高音低音之別，Adrian Brendel（鋼琴家之子）的大提琴有很強的頓奏及節奏感，於是和綿延的單簧管既有對比，兩支樂器先後演奏同一樂句時，也做出比單純重覆更有味道的對答感覺。
Two Beethoven works for clarinet, cello and piano. Beethoven readily provided a violin part as an alternative to clarinet but these works were now rarely played as conventional piano trio. For instance, the Barenboims’ recent cycle of Beethoven Piano Trios excluded both works.
What a pity. The second and third movements of the Gassenhauer Trio have a lovely vocal quality. The second movement is like an opera aria in disguise, while the third movement is a set of variations on a popular street song (Gassenhauer refers to “street song”, thus the nickname).
The op.38 trio is an arrangement of the Septet (op.20) which was very popular in Beethoven’s time. From seven to three instruments, a certain variety of instrumental colours are lost but I never find it monotonous. This six-movement work is a de facto serenade, and is in a lighter mood than Beethoven’s more serious works. Yet when Beethoven chose to go pop, he always did it with style. Those who can only admire the heroic and the profound in Beethoven don’t have much musical ear in my estimation.
In this particular performance clarinet and cello struck a delightful balance. It’s not just a difference in pitch or timbre, but essentially it was Adrian Brendel’s marked, rhythmical, quasi-staccato playing that set the cello against the cantabile clarinet of Pascal Moraguès. With such yin-and-yang the pieces never sound repetitious.