All five string trios by Ludwig van Beethoven were composed before 1798, i.e. before he composed his String Quartets Op.18. To understand the string trios as their preliminary studies would be to misjudge their true meaning. The complete recording of the Trio Ostertag shows how masterfully Beethoven was able to solve the delicate proportions of sound resulting from the instrumentation. Trio Ostertag consists of violinist Christian Ostertag, violist Katrin Melcher, and cellist Martin Ostertag.