Today introduces me to a new category of Haydn’s music – piano trios.

What’s a piano trio?

My first guess is it has something to do with three piano players.

Apparently, my first guess is wrong.

I got the three right.

But it’s not three pianists; it’s one pianist, a violinist, and a cellist. More precisely, for this recording, it is the Van Swieten Trio, which consists of:

Bart van Oort fortepiano
Remy Baudet violin
Jaap ter Linden cello

Another wild guess: they’re Dutch.

That one, I got right.

From the outset, I can tell you that fortepiano is not my favorite instrument. It’s a jangly-sounding keyboard that reminds me of (a) a harpsichord, or (b) an out-of-tune piano in a saloon in an old Western movie.

Ha! I just looked up fortepiano and discovered Continue reading →