The three string trios op.9 from 1798 were a major step forward for the young Beethoven. In Vienna he already had a reputation as a pianist. This resulted in a number of piano sonatas and the Piano Trios op.3. He did not yet venture into the weighty genre of string quartet, where
Haydn and
Mozart were dominant. The genre of the string trio, however, offered less competition. The Third String Trio
… - in the dramatic key of C minor - seems to be a finger exercise for the early symphonies. (HJ)more
