Beethoven Trio Bonn

Beethoven Trio Bonn ranks among Germany's leading chamber groups, maintaining a repertoire centered on its namesake while also encompassing an array of other Romantic compositions, among them seldom-heard Russian scores. Established in 2005, the ensemble originally comprised violinist Mikhail "Misha" Ovrutsky, a protege of Anne-Sophie Mutter, cellist Grigory "Grisha" Alumyan, who maintains an active solo schedule alongside his role as principal cellist of the Beethoven Orchestra Bonn, and pianist Rinko Hama. In 2015 Jinsang Lee, laureate of several major competitions in the 1990s and early 2000s, succeeded Hama at the keyboard. Ovrutsky and Alumyan were born in Moscow, Hama was a Tokyo native, and Lee hails from Seoul; each member sustains a thriving solo career in tandem with trio activities. During its formative period the group concentrated on Beethoven, garnering favorable notice from German reviewers. Subsequently it embraced Russian works, featuring both uncommon compositions by Nikolai Kapustin and established trios by Rachmaninov and Shostakovich. The Beethoven Trio Bonn has undertaken extensive tours that encompass South Africa and Japan in addition to engagements across Europe and the United States, appearing at prominent German sites such as the Beethovenfest in Bonn and Cologne's Raderberg concert series. Its discography, produced in partnership with the Deutschlandfunk radio network, appears exclusively on the CAvi-Music label. The 2013 debut album presented trios by Kapustin, Rachmaninov, Shostakovich, and Anton Arensky, followed in 2016 by a recording devoted to Alexander Alyabyev and in 2017 by one centered on Georgy Sviridov. In 2020 the ensemble issued a comprehensive Beethoven piano-trio cycle across three volumes that incorporated rarities such as the Gassenhauer Trio, Op. 11, and an arrangement of the Symphony No. 6 in F major, Op. 68 ("Pastoral").