Donald Satz <[log in to unmask]> writes: >The piano sonatas, violin sonatas, piano trios, and string quartets cover >a wide period of Beethoven's composing life. The string trios just cover >his early period. I suspect that if Beethoven had kept writing string >trios up to and through his maturity, the first three would be much >better known. Probably true, but I've also noticed that, once a composer starts writing quartets, they seldom return to string trios. Of course, this does not diminish the worth of Beethoven's string trios. BTW, if I can get an early plug in, the Culver Chamber Music Series will be presenting a performance of Beethoven's E flat String Trio Op. 3 on April 1. Jocelyn Wang Culver Chamber Music Series www.bigfoot.com/~CulverMusic