Kenneth Carter, Classicalsource, reviews a performance on October 4, 2007 at The Red Hedgehog, 255-257 Archway Road, Highgate, London N6 5BS

The highly-charged, dynamic and exhilarating London Mozart Trio brings together an Englishman, a Pole and a Russian who became a British citizen in 1998. It links teachers at the Royal Academy of Music, the Royal College of Music and the Purcell and Guildhall Schools while—perhaps owing to its combination of Anglo-Saxon self-possession and Slavic fire—producing a fascinating, red-blooded sound, warmly full and robust.

Colin Stone puts the dynamic of his pellucid style at the service of his coolly Romantic sensibility. He plays with astonishing and commanding versatility. Krzysztof Smietana coaxes his violin into making ravishing, lyrical sounds—rich and sweet-toned. In its upper register, his violin is dulcet, mellow, soaring and beguiling; in its lower register I heard the richness of a viola. Leonid Gorokhov plays his cello with solid, utterly reliable proficiency—a craftsman who seems to draw sound from the earth itself. Together, they generate the full, weighty sound of a miniature orchestra. In their hands, piano trios are monuments to reckon with.

The performances were of superb quality. The 'Archduke' was impassioned and magisterial. It had tremendous energy and drive; it had variety and subtlety—a glistening beauty, too. Beethoven, here, was dynamic and mercurial—vital and lithe. Tempos were finely-judged—forward-moving and restless, yet with time and space to sing. This is, surely, one of Beethoven's most joyous works.

The Trio Élégaique was simple, eloquent and beautiful. In this work Rachmaninov, though still a student, showed already his power over sensuous and sensual melody—the mood of this single movement work is out-and-out Romantic, while the writing is careful and controlled. The Trio begins and ends with the same gorgeous, lyrical melody being handed from one instrument to the other, giving each player a solo spot to demonstrate his mettle. Stone, Smietana and Gorokhov rose to the occasion.

The Mendelssohn Trio begins unexpectedly—a composer loved and renowned for exuberance and lightness of touch plunging into Sturm und Drang. The London Mozart Trio bit into this restless and darkly troubled side to Mendelssohn's nature with searing zest. Some of the playing was suitably rough and tough. The ensuing scherzo and slow movement, though less fraught, were still disturbing. The finale is elegant and light, yet pointed and serious. Stone, Smietana and Gorokhov caught the mood neatly, responding attentively to the various styles and yet presenting this original and at times disturbing work as a compositional unity.

The Red Hedgehog was packed, giving an electric buzz to this intimate venue. Investigating the acoustics, I chose to sit at the front, right by the cello, facing, on occasion, the full thunder of the piano. The balance was nevertheless admirable, the sound full and immediate.

See Classical Source.

Jessica Duchen, Classic FM Magazine, reviews Shostakovich The Two Piano Trios and Piano Quintet (June 2008)

They [play] not only with heart-warming commitment but with a real sense of unity and empathy. British pianist Colin Stone underpins the ensemble with a fine touch and rich sound; Polish-born violinist Krzysztof Smietana's ineffably expressive tone deserves a medal of its own, but is Gorokhov's perfect match. I look forward returning to this CD again and again.

Mike Wheeler, Music & Vision, reviews performance of February 18, 2011

It's good to see Derby Chamber Music's audience numbers holding up (apart from the snow-induced dip in December). The London Mozart Trio deserved no less for their exceptionally fine playing, in which every detail was handled with evident care and thought (Multi-Faith Centre, Derby University, Derby, UK, 18 February 2011).

Martinu's reputation has seen an overdue revival in recent years after a long period of neglect, and the players opened with a welcome airing for his thoroughly attractive Piano Trio no 2 in D minor. Vigorous and muscular in the first movement, they found a note of restless lyricism in the second, and brought a crispness to the finale's rhythmic energy.

They struck an apt balance between buoyant dance rhythms and soulful melancholy in a vivid account of Dvor�k's Dumky Trio. Some of the tempo fluctuations in the fifth movement were perhaps exaggerated—Dvor�k, after all, deliberately down-played the contrasts here—but it was generally a fresh, invigorating performance.

As was of Schubert's B flat Trio after the interval. The group's rock-solid unanimity on both technical and interpretative levels made for a fresh, bouncy reading of the first movement (which not even a broken cello string could undermine), [and] the nicely flowing tempo adopted for the second movement still managed to sound leisurely.

They found an impish wit (not a quality often associated with Schubert) in the scherzo, [and] in the finale it was impossible not to get caught up in thejoie-de-vivre of both the piece and the performance. Odd to think that this was the work of a composer who was once said to have claimed there was no such thing a cheerful music.