The Trio Con Brio Copenhagen recorded the Ravel Trio for a 2007 release (nla) on the US-based Azica label. It was their debut on disc, I believe, and a solid performance, though not quite as polished and confident as this one. Indeed, in subsequent recordings these musicians have proved themselves to be consistently bold in their expressivity, and here their Ravel is muscular and vibrantly coloured – or at least that’s how it seems alongside my current favourite recording by the Busch Trio (Alpha, 11/23), a performance of astonishing subtlety and, at times, a profoundly touching fragility.

The Danes are ever sensitive to harmonic detail but I do wish they were a little more attentive to the score’s many pianissimo markings. Listen to the last minute or so of the first movement, for instance, where Ravel writes lointain (‘far away’). The TCB Copenhagen are eloquent, yes, but the Busch suggest a precariousness that makes this newcomer sound a bit plain by comparison. There are marvellous moments in the Passacaille, such as the passage at 4'56", where the muted strings sound like exotic folk instruments. The finale is tremendously exciting, even volcanic, and beautifully sculpted, too, although the Danes always see the forest for the trees, so details never hinder the music’s flow.

I wish I could say the same for the Danish trio’s Schubert. I find their change of gears at 2'28" in the first movement distracting. And in the opening of the Andante, cellist Soo-Kyung Hong is so attentive to each note’s expressive potential, and offers such a stunning variety of tone, that the through-line gets lost. For comparison here, try the Trio Dalí (Fuga Libera, 10/11), where Christian Pierre La Marca sings with tremendous heart but a surer sense of direction. That said, the Danes’ Scherzo is a delight; it flows naturally, is light on its feet and kaleidoscopic in its shifting colours. In the finale, the ensemble’s playful energy follows the music’s myriad twists and turns like a seasoned Formula One team.

Not my top choices for this pair of works, then, but both interpretations offer considerable pleasure nonetheless.