Vadim Repin (violin), Mischa Maisky (cello), Lang Lang (piano)  Deutsche Grammophon 477 8099*****

Tchaikovsky's Piano Trio, written in memory of his friend and mentor, Nikolai Rubinstein (1835-81), was conceived on an epic scale, with a demanding piano part to recall Rubinstein's greatness as a performer.

It’s not an easy piece to bring off, as it can all too easily sound overblown and excessively repetitive – it’s one of those pieces that’s still often cut to make it more manageable in performance. This new, starry recording, with Chinese megastar pianist Lang Lang (due back in Dublin next month) making his chamber music début, gets it just right. The big personalities mesh, and the music positively glows. Rachmaninov’s youthful

G minor Trio sounds equally fine. www.dgwebshop.com