Haydn rarely disappoints in the music of his maturity, and the four trios here were written between 1789 and 1795, years in which he celebrated his sixtieth birthday and saw his fame at its apogee; indeed, the last three of these works were composed during his triumphant second visit to England. This fine music receives admirably assured performances from Joseph Kalichstein and his colleagues. Their approach is vital yet deli-cate, rightly reminding us that this is music for domestic performance rather than the concert-hall. The pianist leads, but his fellow artists are no mere subordinates and all three play with sensitivity and rapport. They are very impressive in the E minor Trio, a deeply thoughtful piece for its first two movements (the slow one being in the tonic major) that then dances through a joyful finale, taken here at a spanking pace yet not over-pressed.
The rest of the programme is equally enjoyable. The C major Trio has a sparkling finale that should make the most hardened listener smile. Indeed, this is a wonderfully intelligent and witty work, where the A major Andante shows a key relationship with the rest by its A minor/C major middle section; oddly enough, the slow movement of the popular ''Gipsy Rondo'' Trio in G major bears the same relation to the main key by being in E major. Overall, these trios offer sunny music, and yet their inventiveness is such that they are never bland, much less routine. However, the last to be written, No 28 in E major, is more challenging in mood. It begins strikingly with pizzicato strings and unfolds with the freedom that comes naturally to a great composer but puzzles analysts, while its central Allegretto is a long way from conventional Papa Haydn in having a no less unusual baroque severity and even bareness. This is a fine, generously filled disc and the recording is as refined as the playing.'