There must be over fifty different recordings of Brahms’ D minor Violin Sonata alone in the catalogue, beginning with Isolde Menges and Harold Samuel in...

There must be over fifty different recordings of Brahms’ D minor Violin Sonata alone in the catalogue, beginning with Isolde Menges and Harold Samuel in 1929 (on Biddulph if you can find it though it’s on an Italian pirate label as well). But there’s always room for an intelligent and tonally vibrant set, such as Oliveira and Osorio provide. In the first movement of the G major it is instructive to observe how they prefer expressive and emotive shading to more obvious metrical displacements and tempo changing. This imparts a seamlessness to their performance if perhaps at times a rather unyielding one. Osorio is on fine form in the Adagio, weighting his chords aptly and Oliveira catching the glinting, shifting profile of the violin’s line. The finale is steady, Oliveira playing with soaring caution, bringing the movement to a peak of lyrical intensity at 5.30 with some dramatically urgent and opulent tonal resources. They’re not as taut here as the famous oft-quoted Suk-Katchen duo but are strongly convincing on their own terms.

The difficult Second (difficult because it’s hard successfully to convey its sometimes elusive meaning) receives a dramatic interpretation. This is strong on luscious tonal expressivity, strongly etched and committed, a very exterior traversal. There’s much variation of vibrato usage from Oliveira and also some pungent chording from Osorio. In the slow movement in particular Oliveira digs into considerable reserves of lavished intensity, utilising the arsenal of devices open to a tonalist of stature to inflect and deepen the line. The gracious finale still has in their hands a steady, cumulative power to it. The D minor once more exemplifies Oliveira and Osorio’s drama and power-laced aesthetic in these works. The Allegro is strong and powerful, the Adagio structurally acute, Oliveira reserving emotive intensity for the optimum structural moment, which is not - pace certain well known fiddle players - too early. He manages to highlight lyric phrases adeptly and is not inclined to use his vibrato as a sauce. The third movement is elegant, wistful with just the right note of lightness and movement, the finale strong and courageous.

The acoustic can, it’s true, impart some edginess to Oliveira’s tone though the balance itself is just. Fortissimi are also inclined to be steely but this is reflective as much of the strength of the performances – which are recommended to those who enjoy high octane Brahms sonatas.

-- Jonathan Woolf, MusicWeb International