An extraordinarily calm and personable Ben Baker introduced us to what he was about to play. Beethoven's Sonata No 5 was composed, he told us, in 1801 for one of the composer's many patrons - in this case Count Moritz von Fries, for whom he also wrote the fourth violin sonata, a string quartet and his seventh symphony. It is a bright and cheerful piece in four movements well able to call itself the Spring sonata, although that name came along later. Ben Baker's playing gave a delightful start to the day for his audience.
Benjamin Baker was born in New Zealand in 1990 and studied at the Yehudi Menuhin School and since 2009 at London's Royal College of Music. Among many other awards he won 1st prize in the string section of the 2012 Royal Over-Seas League Competition.
Accompanying on the piano was Peter Limonov, born in Moscow in 1984. By 1998 he had won First Prize at the Nikolai Rubinstein piano competition in Paris - and has continued his studies at both the Royal Academy of Music and Royal College of Music.
The audience loved the Busch Ensemble's trio - although several around me were not happy at its end. It turns out we were hearing Beethoven and not the Schubert detailed on the programme provided on every seat.
Event: Wednesday 21 August at 9.30am