The Opus 1 Trios were first performed at one of the soirées of Beethoven’s patron Prince Lichnowsky (to whom the published set would be dedicated) in the presence of Haydn late in 1793 or 1794, shortly before Haydn left for England. Haydn spoke warmly of the works (though he thought that one of them, in C minor, was too advanced to be accepted by the general public). Beethoven was irked at Haydn’s view and ascribed it to jealousy on the part of the older composer. But perhaps, once the heat of passion had cooled, he looked at the compositions again and decided that they needed further revision. In any case, he did not rush into print. It was another year and a half before their publication, when Beethoven chose to identify them as “Opus 1,” an explicit sign that he was now ready to be taken seriously as a composer.

Four movements betokened the symphony, and Beethoven’s decision to add a fourth movement (Mozart and Haydn had used only three in their piano trios) suggests that he is making a greater claim for the significance of the piano trio than composers had done hitherto. Harmonically, too, Beethoven is already pushing the boundaries.

In the case of the G major Trio, the slow introduction offers some harmonic surprises as we wait to settle firmly on the home G major for the Allegro. But then the main thematic material of the opening movement stays in a clearly delimited (and normal) harmonic world—though the “knocking” rhythm of the main theme is certainly assertive in a delightfully playful way. The development section rapidly becomes chromatic in ways that tend to surprise, and Beethoven plays with our expectations as to when the recapitulation will start.

The richly developed Largo slow movement is in the very bright key of E, not the expected C major (though it touches briefly on the more normal key in its course).

The Scherzo that follows moves quickly in passing through some of the same harmonies, a subtle aural link between the movements. The lively character of the movement is more “modern” than that of the menuetto which Beethoven still uses in the third trio of the set, almost “symphonic” in its motivic play. The Trio, in B minor, seems to strike a tone of folk dancing.

The Finale is an unbuttoned galop that races like the wind, brilliant and playful, full of animal spirits all around. —© S. L.