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Although Beethoven's Triple Concerto in C major for piano, violin, cello and orchestra, Op. 56 (1804), never impressed critics as much as his violin and piano concertos did, concertgoers have long enjoyed it for its delicious melodies and memorable tunes, especially its soaring first movement and sweet Largo. In an impassioned reading from three of the twentieth-century's greatest musicians and one of its most-celebrated conductors, the piece couldn't fail. The music is, as you probably know, actually a kind of orchestrated chamber trio, a sinfonia concertante where the several instruments oppose the orchestra and each other, a style that had passed out of vogue by Beethoven's time but one into which Beethoven injected new life.

The Berlin Philharmonic sounds, as always, magnificent, and Karajan avoids glamorizing or over-romanticizing the score. When the cello, the violin, and then the piano make their entrance in the first movement, we can see immediately this going to be a gentle, relaxed Triple Concerto, with no want of beauty or expression. The performance is responsive and spacious, yet we can still appreciate the full force of the great orchestra making itself known, reminding us that no matter how easygoing the interpretation may be, it's still an interpretation on the grandest scale. You're not going to get this kind of sound from a chamber ensemble or a period-instruments group.

As to the soloists, remarkably, they play as though they had worked together for years. None of the three men attempts to upstage the others, and their instruments complement one another perfectly, almost producing three variations of the same instrument (or four if you count the orchestra, which also blends in flawlessly). Naturally, the cello most often takes the lead, yet Rostropovich never actually dominates; it's a genuinely shared experience.