Shostakovich: Piano Trios & Violin Sonata

This high-calibre chamber-music playing is a terrific way to get to know some powerful works. Violinist Ilya Gringolts, cellist Daniel Haefliger and pianist Gilles Vonsattel perform with extraordinary sympathy and a sense of unity, yet they each have strong personalities. The two trios and violin sonata often confront situations of great pain and anguish in Shostakovich’s life, but they still sing with breathtaking beauty—something these players convey stunningly. The recording, made in Zurich, is particularly fine—detailed yet glowing and given just the right amount of ambience.