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Géza Anda plays Solo Recitals, 1950-1955

SWR

$13.49 ~~$26.99~~ Save 50% Apr 27, 2010

REVIEW:

Hungarian virtuoso Géza Anda (1921-1976) opens a recital derived from radio broadcasts from SWR Stuttgart with Haydn’s perky F Major Sonata (17 April 1950), given a sparkling bravura rendition. Anda’s pearly play and deft touch make themselves felt in every concerted bar, and the runaway Presto finale might be a minor meteor. Schumann ever maintained Anda’s devotion, and he often programmed Symphonic Etudes, including the free interpolation of the five posthumous variations. The rendition included here (2 October 1951) includes two of the posthumous etudes, nos. 4 and 5, inserted after the sixth and eighth of the traditional studies. The first exploits sweeping arpeggios and glissandi techniques; the latter opens a jeweled music-box filled with nectar crystals. The serenity yields to the following Etude, a staccato study in syncopations that becomes quite frantic. Etude X, for want of a better term, has always struck me as “Brahmsian” for its double octaves. The agitato mysteries of Etude XI have rarely been so rarified in their mist contours, except perhaps from Cherkassky. The Etude XII finale, besides its obvious, heroic bravura, exudes the Innigkeit requisite...

The Ravel waltzes, in their sturdy percussion, date from 19 May 1951. Anda does not spare the fortissimos nor the pedal, moving to extremes in the first two waltzes, from aggression to erotic insinuation. The dance marked “Presque lent--dans un sentiment intime” has its perfect executor in Anda, which rivals the classically-chiseled entry by Robert Casadesus. Lithe and sensuously nimble, the last two waltzes--Moins vif et Epilogue--combine Vienna glitter and Schubert’s intimate suggestiveness in Ravel’s idiosyncratic kaleidoscopic panoply. Rolf Liebermann’s 1951 Sonata (2 October 1951) marks one of the few pieces Anda programmed that post-date World War II. His “modern” repertory ceased, for the most part, with the 1945 Third Concerto of Bartok. Liebermann (1910-1999) begins his nine-minute work with a toccata-style Vivace with periodic moments of pointillist staccati. The heart of the piece is the Andante espessivo, rather angular and reminiscent of Ravel, Gershwin, and modal Poulenc.

The second disc is devoted to the 1955 (May 21) recital at Ludwigsburg, a venue frequented by Anda’s esteemed colleague, Clara Haskil. Anda opens with the First Ballade of Chopin, a reading of balanced intensities, gothic and introspective at once. The music’s fierce Neapolitan harmonies and inner tumult manage to find a noble repose in the course of its poetic declamation mid-way, only to yield to the Dionysiac dramaturgy of its late pages with a passionate abandon that belies Anda’s repute for “objectivity.”

Anda recorded the Op. 25 set of Chopin Etudes for EMI, and he often featured the complete ensemble as a concert staple. He plays the A-flat Major for its serene beauty, and thus sets the tone for the remainder, to be played in the classic style of Backhaus, for poetry and strength of form.

The Brahms E-flat Major intermezzo, a simple, nostalgic folk song evocation, makes the perfect commentary to all of the “learned” counterpoint of this evening’s colossal recital at Ludwigsburg, where the spirit of colleague Clara Haskil must have lingered nigh.

-- Audiophile Edition

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Géza Anda plays Solo Recitals, 1950-1955
SWR Apr 2010
CD
~~$26.99~~ $13.49

SCHUBERT: PIANO SONATAS D 784 & D 959; ALLEGRETTO

WARNER CLASSICS

$17.28 Feb 17, 2023

I love Schubert," writes pianist Eric Lu. "It is difficult to describe how meaningful his music is to me. He was the ultimate artist, in the purest sense of the word. Late in his life, with death staring him down and all his hopes and dreams dashed... he continued to churn out one masterpiece after another. I have come to the conclusion that he is the composer who moves me most intensely." Lu's album of Schubert pairs two of his greatest sonatas - D 784 in A minor, written in 1823, and D 959 in A major, written in 1828, the last year of the composer's short life; complementing them is the Allegretto in C minor D 915, dating from 1827. When Eric Lu won the 2018 Leeds International Piano Competition, the Guardian welcomed him as "one of the most exciting prospects in a long time... a veritable poet of the keyboard." These words were borne out by the critics' response to his first Warner Classics album, a programme of Chopin, Schumann and Brahms. International Piano magazine found it "truly magical", while Fanfare welcomed "a gifted musician... who can probe the depths of the piano literature with poetic sensibilities and imagination.

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SCHUBERT: PIANO SONATAS D 784 & D 959; ALLEGRETTO
WARNER CLASSICS Feb 2023
CD
$17.28

Bach, Corea, Purcell, Rameau et al.: Night Passages / Fröst, Dubé, Pöntinen

Sony Masterworks

$11.98 Apr 22, 2022

Gramophone Award-nominated artist Martin Fröst uses every recording as an opportunity to look at repertoire and performance through fresh eyes. His latest album for Sony Classical brings the extraordinary alchemy of a specially formed ensemble to the public with highly original arrangements for the first time on record.

With acclaimed pianist Roland Pöntinen and legendary bassist Sébastien Dubé, Fröst’s new album Night Passages charts a nocturnal journey through the mystical and the melancholic, the playful and the profound.

Reimagining favorites from the Baroque, while touching on jazz and folk music the album’s atmosphere carries with it the vibe of late-night improvisation and deep conversation between friends. From Rameau to Richard Rodgers, it invites listeners to eavesdrop on a musical union.

All nineteen tracks on the album were arranged by Fröst and his fellow trio members for their own instrumental lineup of clarinet, piano and bass. Scintillating Scarlatti keyboard mingling with touching Handel, virile Purcell, aerated Bach and works by Rameau that sound with new exotic allure.

Despite the quiet intimacy in works such as Richard Rodgers It Never Entered my Mind and Bach’s Jesu, meine Freunde, there is virtuosity, stamina and athleticism on display too, not least in a strident arrangement of Vallflickans Dans by the Swedish composer Hugo Alfvén – a piece close to the heart of any Swede.

The album further includes the trio’s light-footed take on Chick Corea’s Armando’s Rhumba and Fröst’s own cadenza-like Prelude to the traditional Swedish polka Dorotea, which is full of his trademark improvisatory fluidity. The same qualities appear to stop time in a heart-rending take on Purcell’s Music for a While. The result is a unique fusion of music past and present, and a snapshot of a three-way musical friendship like none other.

Includes:

Domenico Scarlatti: Sonata in D Minor, K. 32
Chick Corea: Children’s Song: No. 15
Johann Sebastian Bach: Jesus bleibet meine Freude BWV 147
Henry Purcell: "Music for a While" Z. 583 (from Oedipus)
Richard Rodgers, Lorenz Hart: "It Never Entered My Mind"
Jean-Philippe Rameau: Air pour les Sauvages
Antonio Cesti: "Intorno all'idol mio"
Johann Sebastian Bach: Sinfonia No. 5 in E-Flat Major, BWV 791
Chick Corea: Armando's Rhumba
Henry Purcell: Hornpipe in E Minor, Z. 685
George Frideric Handel: Suite in B-Flat Major, HWV 434: IV. Menuet
Domenico Scarlatti: Sonata in D minor Kk.1
Jean-Philippe Rameau: Musette tendre en rondeau
Hugo Alfvén: Vallflickans Dans
Johann Sebastian Bach: Sinfonia No. 15 in B Minor, BWV 801
Martin Fröst: Prelude to Dorotea
Traditional: Polska from Dorotea
Jean-Philippe Rameau: Tambourin en rondeau
Gordon Jenkins: "Goodbye"

Martin Fröst, clarinet
Sébastien Dubé, bass
Roland Pöntinen, piano

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Bach, Corea, Purcell, Rameau et al.: Night Passages / Fröst, Dubé, Pöntinen
Sony Masterworks Apr 2022
CD
$11.98

Schubert: The Testament

Analekta

$20.99 Jul 31, 2026

Pianist Mathieu Gaudet presents the final instalment of his Complete Schubert Sonatas and Major Piano Works recording series. This final volume, The Testament, showcases the very last Sonata by Schubert in B flat major D. 960, a work with a unique sound environment, at once lush but modest, passionate but patient, opening a door to a world of extreme sensitivity. Also on this album is the Sonata in E minor D. 566, written by a romantic 20 year-old man, full of fun ideas and strokes of genius.

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Schubert: The Testament
Analekta Jul 2026
CD
$20.99

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Haydn: The Complete Piano Sonatas, Vol. 2 / Bavouzet

Chandos

$21.99 Apr 26, 2011

"Bavouzet’s Haydn is unmatched in its zest and its wit. But it is also substantial, informed and deeply rewarding."

--The New York Times on Bavouzet's Haydn Sonatas cycle, 2022

The multi-award winning and ever-popular Jean-Efflam Bavouzet is back with Volume 2 of Chandos' highly acclaimed Haydn Sonata series. This new release follows Bavouzet's complete Debussy cycle and a number of recent concerto recordings - all of which have been extraordinarily well received by critics and audiences alike, picking up numerous awards along the way.

Many leading pianists have tackled these at times technically challenging classical sonatas by Haydn, but in Bavouzet's own words, this is a composer who always left the door open for new interpretations: 'One often forgets how little information Haydn left in the text of his keyboard works: few instructions on nuance and phrasing, and very minimal tempo indications. Playing them is all the more fascinating for that, but it is also arduous and even risky for the performer, who must, even more than usual, create his or her own world and internal logic, only hoping - in the absence of tangible proof - that he or she is not straying too far from the composer's intentions, forever out of reach.'

For the recording Bavouzet brought in a specially selected Yamaha piano which he feels gives the sort of tonal quality he is looking for, and it shows in the programme for Volume 2 which includes the elegantly virtuosic Sonata in E minor, No. 19; Sonata in B flat major, No. 20; Sonata in G minor, No. 32; Sonata in C major, No. 48, and Sonata in D major, No. 50.

REVIEWS

Though better known in French repertory, Mr Bavouzet has begun an exploration of Haydn’s long-underrated sonatas. The first installment was dazzling, and the second is too: crisp and detailed. Mr Bavouzet’s slow movements are particularly memorable; he shows instinctive feeling for the way this music breathes.

--New York Times (Zachary Woolfe)

This second volume in Jean-Efflam Bavouzet’s Haydn sonata is every bit as outstanding as the first…the sonics are as brilliant and natural as the playing. A wonderful recital, from first note to last.

--ClassicsToday.com (David Hurwitz)

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Haydn: The Complete Piano Sonatas, Vol. 2 / Bavouzet
Chandos Apr 2011
CD
$21.99

Schubert: Warmth [Sonatas and Variations] / Gaudet

Analekta

$20.99 Nov 19, 2021

The new album Schubert: Warmth by pianist Mathieu Gaudet is the fifth volume in his wonderful collection The Complete Sonatas and Major Works for Piano of the great German composer Franz Schubert. While it is true that Schubert’s music is often tinged with a hushed melancholy, at times it is suffused with an optimistic, bountiful light that ardently celebrates life, such as the radiant Sonata No. 16 in D Major, D. 850, the Sonata No. 5 in A-flat Major, D. 557 and The Variations in A Minor, D. 576 offered on this new album.

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Schubert: Warmth [Sonatas and Variations] / Gaudet
Analekta Nov 2021
CD
$20.99

Schubert: Piano Sonata No. 20 & Moments musicaux
Bridge Records Nov 1996
CD
$18.99

Schubert: Piano Sonatas, Vol. 4

Nimbus

$15.99 ~~$20.99~~ Save 25% Jul 07, 2017

Schubert wrote eleven complete sonatas between 1817 and 1828. He also composed movements for several sonatas which he left unfinished. Sonata in A minor D. 784 is one of the most important singular works in Schubert's output that stays apart from his previous and later sonatas. It is an austere, almost minimalistic work that achieves a profound and lasting impact. It is one of the darkest and most unsettling pieces he ever wrote and one of the most confessional. This relatively short sonata, by Schubert's standards, is one of the most authentic, prophetic and enigmatic works ever written. Sonata in A major D. 959 was writte in 1828, the last year of Schubert's life, very rapidly alongside the sonatas in C minor and B-flat major, just a few month before his death. The speed, quality and quantity of Schubert's output in the last year of his life are a marvel. In his last year, Schubert wrote some of the most important work that sums up his ideas, inspiration and ambitious as a composer. These incredible works were written by the artist at the peak of his creative powers with clarity and precision. In these works, including the last three sonatas, Schubert points the ways to resolving the perennial conflicts of existence: his final message seems to be that of acceptance and reconciliation. Towards the end of his life, Schubert was learning to accept death as a promise, as a blessing.

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Schubert: Piano Sonatas, Vol. 4
Nimbus Jul 2017
CD
~~$20.99~~ $15.99

Hugo Kauder: Chamber Music, Vol. 1

Toccata

$20.99 May 15, 2026

In 1938 the Moravian-born Hugo Kauder (1888-1972) became one of the many Jewish musicians forced to flee Vienna into exile in the United States. Kauder's music reflects his Viennese heritage, with his generous output of chamber music in particular continuing the tradition of Brahms, not least in it's depth of feeling and dignity of manner. These four sonatas, early works balancing youthful passion and mature emotion, launch a series intended to recover the work of a composer who himself might fairly be classed as another Viennese master.

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Hugo Kauder: Chamber Music, Vol. 1
Toccata May 2026
CD
$20.99

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Haydn: Piano Sonatas, Vol. 3 / Leon McCawley

SOMM Recordings

$20.99 Nov 20, 2020

SOMM Recordings is pleased to announce the third volume in Leon McCawley’s much praised series of Franz Joseph Haydn’s Piano Sonatas. Six Sonatas, spanning the years 1767-84, are featured: the earliest No.31 in A-flat major, the latest No.56 in D major while Robert Matthew- Walker provides fascinating booklet notes describing the multifarious effects on his music of Haydn’s enthusiasm for equal temperament. Sonata No.31 in A-flat major is, he says, a continuation of Bach that seems to bypass Mozart and anticipate early Beethoven: “Astonishingly original music, and not just for its time”. The two-movement Sonata No.32 in G minor is a unique and intimate work while No.34 in D major boasts an innovative tonal scheme that disguises its virtuosity with immediately approachable technique. The F major Sonata No.38, notes Matthew-Walker, is “full of that wonderful combination of inner life and directly human expression that is the essence of Haydn”. Two later Sonatas – Nos.55 (B-flat major) and 56 (D major) – arguably saw romantic sonata form tested to its expressive limits by “Haydn’s original genius” and his “thematic developmental-variation technique even today causing surprise for its profoundly original subtleties”. Volume I was recognized with a coveted Diapason d’Or from Diapason magazine, which enthused: “What a range in his interpretation and how many layers of gradation! McCawley ties these together in a special quality of inflexions which make their point with great intelligibility and sensitivity”. BBC Music Magazine declared Volume II “should stand high on any list” of quality recordings of Haydn, adding “the sparkle of McCawley’s touch is instantly apparent”. Gramophone also commended McCawley’s playing, describing it as “light of touch, stylistically assured and brimful of intelligence and wit”.

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Haydn: Piano Sonatas, Vol. 3 / Leon McCawley
SOMM Recordings Nov 2020
CD
$20.99

Furtwängler & Beethoven: Sonatas for Violin & Piano / Moser, Huhn

Profil

$6.99 ~~$13.99~~ Save 50% Apr 26, 2011

An uncommon pairing. Well worth hearing. A fascinating release.

Sophie Moser and Katja Huhn have chosen an absorbing programme of two contrasting violin sonatas. Firstly there’s a rarely-heard score byf Wilhelm Furtwängler: his difficult and serious Second Sonata. The coupling is Beethoven’s optimistic Sonata No. 8 in G major, much better known but often overshadowed by the composer’s more famous Spring and Kreutzer sonatas.

The first thing that I noticed was the attractive presentation. Full of interesting information the booklet includes fascinating reproductions of a 1940 recital programme of Furtwängler’s D major Sonata with descriptions in German.

It may come as a surprise to some readers that in addition to the demands of a heavy conducting schedule Furtwängler found time to compose. Furtwängler was fifty-two when he completed his Violin Sonata No.2 in 1939. Cast in three movements it is a long work lasting over forty minutes. At times it reminded me of the chamber music of Reger and Hindemith. I found the sound quality excellent being especially clear and well balanced.

Marked Allegro moderato the opening movement has a sunny disposition with a tinge of mystery. Soon developing into a fierce storm the forceful music surges over the listener like a torrent. Much of Moser’s violin part is for its highest register. Thankfully Huhn’s piano is never allowed to dominate. An uneasy calm pervades the Lento. Although the piano textures are heavy the lyricism is predominantly passionate. There are passages of greater weight and angst but this soon diminishes. A curious short passage for pizzicato at 8:53-9:08 is impassive and characterless. Moser and Huhn drive the pace of the Finale: Presto like a gale-force wind. Here Furtwängler’s writing encompasses dramatic emotional contrasts with extremely wide dynamics. Short passages of relative calm provide only a brief respite from the near frenetic writing. Rather abruptly the score ends with a sudden outburst of energy.

Beethoven’s Violin Sonata No. 8, sometimes known as the ‘ little G major’, is the last in a set of three sonatas. Published as op. 30 in Vienna in 1803 the set bears a dedication to the monarch Tsar Alexander I of Russia. With regard to the sound quality I found Huhn’s piano placed too far forward in the balance which creates an unappealing bright metallic resonance when played with force.

The playing here is assured with plenty of zest in the uplifting and joyous opening Allegro assai. Contrasting starkly with the outer movements the central movement is more relaxed and features light Viennese rhythms. A temperament of childlike simplicity makes few demands on the listener. Briskly taken by Moser and Huhn the lyrical Finale: Allegro vivace just bounces along with playing that feels fresh and buoyant.

The Beethoven and Furtwängler violin sonatas are an uncommon paring on disc. Furtwängler’s D major score is well worth hearing and makes this a fascinating release.

-- Michael Cookson, MusicWeb International

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Furtwängler & Beethoven: Sonatas for Violin & Piano / Moser, Huhn
Profil Apr 2011
CD
~~$13.99~~ $6.99

BEETHOVEN: CONCERTO FOR VIOLIN KREUTZER SONATA

WARNER CLASSICS

$17.28 Apr 26, 2024

This album presents the core of the violin repertoire - Beethoven's Violin Concerto and Kreutzer Sonata," says Nemanja Radulovic. While these Beethoven masterpieces have been recorded countless times, Radulovic's approach to each of them has an element of innovation. For the concerto, he has expanded Double Sens, the chamber ensemble he founded in 2008. "I wanted to retain the special character of Double Sens as an ensemble which plays without a conductor and explores new ways of interpretation... In our recording of the concerto, we wanted to convey a range of emotions - courage, risk, joy, love, rage, sadness, nostalgia, and magical serenity and tenderness." Rather than playing the grandly scaled Kreutzer Sonata in partnership with a pianist, he performs it here in his own arrangement for solo violin and five-part string ensemble. "While remaining faithful to Beethoven, I allowed myself to exercise my imagination.

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BEETHOVEN: CONCERTO FOR VIOLIN KREUTZER SONATA
WARNER CLASSICS Apr 2024
CD
$17.28

Haydn: The Complete Piano Sonatas, Vol. 1 / Bavouzet

Chandos

$21.99 Mar 30, 2010

"Bavouzet’s Haydn is unmatched in its zest and its wit. But it is also substantial, informed and deeply rewarding."

--The New York Times on Bavouzet's Haydn Sonatas cycle, 2022

Jean-Efflam Bavouzet’s complete Debussy cycle was a big hit across the world in the 2000s, picking up numerous awards along its way. He has now decided to embark upon a Haydn cycle highlighting the fact that he should in no way be pigeon-holed as a ‘French’ specialist. Many leading pianists have tackled these virtuosic classical Sonatas but Bavouzet really feels he has something new to say.

The program for Volume 1 includes the experimental and ambitious Sonata in A flat No. 31, the elegantly virtuosic Sonata in D major No. 391, the expressive Sonata in B minor, No. 47 and the almost Schubertian Sonata in C sharp minor op. 49. Bavouzet shipped in a specially selected Yamaha piano for the recording which he feels give the sort of tonal quality he is looking for.

REVIEWS

We badly need a great Haydn sonata cycle on a modern instrument, and on evidence here Jean-Efflam Bavouzet's promises to be just the ticket. It's fabulous, as wonderful in its own way as was his Debussy cycle for this same label. His approach couldn't be more intelligent: he takes almost all repeats, except in such places as the slow movement of Sonata No. 31 in A-flat (already 24 minutes long), where he adds a fine cadenza of his own making. In quick movements, where final chords seem to render a second-half repeat redundant, he leaves them out the first time through, a practice that I have long believed ought to be standard in such cases. It works wonderfully well.

Interpretively, this is as good as it gets. Bavouzet ornaments repeats with complete naturalness, knows how to phrase a melody without distending the tempo unduly, and exploits the resources of the modern piano in a way that serves the music completely. His touch in such places as the finale of the B minor sonata (No. 47) is phenomenally articulate. In the first movement of No. 31 his right and left hands handle independent dynamics so as to create the same textural layers you might hear through different harpsichord registrations. The sonics are totally at one with the performances: brilliantly vivid, but never hard. I can't wait for Volume 2.

--David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com

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Haydn: The Complete Piano Sonatas, Vol. 1 / Bavouzet
Chandos Mar 2010
CD
$21.99

Beethoven: Concerto Per Violino; Sonata Per Violino "primavera"
IMPORTS Oct 2012
CD
$13.08

A Moment in Time

PENTATONE

$19.99 Feb 20, 2026

Pianist Christian Blackshaw presents A Moment in Time, an intimate exploration of Franz Schubert's late masterworks. The album features the Four Impromptus, D. 899, written in 1827, in which Schubert transforms the simple impromptu into "a harmonically connected cycle of unparalleled beauty." From the dramatic intensity of the first to the serene beauty of the third and the triumph over darkness in the fourth, Blackshaw reveals the depth, subtlety, and emotional brilliance of Schubert's music. The album also presents the Sonata No. 21 in B-flat Major, D. 960, one of Schubert's last major works for solo piano, composed during spring and autumn of 1828. It's movements traverse hope, despair, and luminous introspection, culminating in a finale of quiet triumph. For Blackshaw, these performances are a personal reflection - a snapshot in time of both Schubert's genius and his own lifelong engagement with these works.

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A Moment in Time
PENTATONE Feb 2026
CD
$19.99

Schubert: Sonatas for Violin & Fortepiano / Neudauer, Brunner

CPO

$18.99 Mar 18, 2022

Together with Wolfgang Brunner on the fortepiano, the successful violinist Lena Neudauer now turns to Franz Schubert’s four violin sonatas on cpo. The first three works from 1816 have continued to be incorrectly labeled as sonatinas because the original publisher, Anton Diabelli, issued them under this title in 1836 in order to increase their sales potential. The Sonata in A major composed only a year after the first three more strongly develops Schubert’s characteristic lyricism, the formal structure is more varied, the piano part is of greater tonal refinement, and the work as a whole is longer than the three earlier works. Wolfgang Brunner has selected two different fortepianos: an original instrument from ca. 1810-15 from Franz Münzenberger’s workshop for the earlier sonatas and a Romantic Hammerflügel by Conrad Graf for the grand Sonata in A major. Lena Neudauer performs on a Lorenzo Guadagnini violin from 1743 with gut strings.

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Schubert: Sonatas for Violin & Fortepiano / Neudauer, Brunner
CPO Mar 2022
CD
$18.99

Piano Sonatas

Prospero Classical

$20.99 Feb 06, 2026

In his new CD recording, Swiss pianist Christian Chamorel focuses on four key works for solo piano by W.A. Mozart: the sonatas in C minor, K. 457; B-flat major, K. 333; and D major, K. 576; as well as the expressive Fantasy in C minor, K. 475, which originate from very different creative phases. Chamorel succeeds in creating a subtle interpretation that brings Mozart's music to life from within. Every phrase, every change in dynamics, articulation, and tempo seems like the result of a well-considered artistic decision and, at the same time, like a spontaneous impulse born directly from the moment.

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Piano Sonatas
Prospero Classical Feb 2026
CD
$20.99

Mix & Match

Within the Waves - Sanna Vaarni

Stradivarius

$16.99 Mar 20, 2026

A programme that brings together two compositions very far from each other in time, both entitled Sonata, promises much for the imagination. The two Sonatas, for opposing reasons, were the last sonatas to be published during the lifetime of the two composers. Between them, like a bridge, is a piece permeated by the memory of water: how, then, can one give form to this intertwining? A profound ambiguity, between smiling and melancholy, inhabits the poetic world of the Sonata in G major, Op. 78, D. 894. Schubert had very clear ideas about the formal structure of the piece, thinking of a unified structure in four movements. Schubert had already seen that framework dissolve in the hands of his beloved Beethoven, who, in the two Sonatas of Op. 27, blurred the lines with regard to his scores, constructing complex, sometimes cyclical structures in which all traditional patterns disintegrate, creating a genre that is increasingly difficult to appreciate; on the other hand, with the Sonata in A minor, D. 845, Schubert had already been designated by music critics as the possible successor to such experimentation. Luciano Berio, who dedicated memorable tributes to Schubert such as Rendering (1989/90), also experimented, in the last years of his life, with the form that so obsessed Schubert: Sonata (2001) is a wonderful piece that brings both his career and his piano repertoire to a close. To explain how to approach it, we would like to pass the word to Marco Uvietta, who was able to study it's structure closely, consulting with the composer himself: Berio speaks of the Sonata as a structure made up of different blocks, which are held together by elements that act as continuous transitions. In the words of the composer: just as when traveling by train, the landscapes change, but the pylons continue to pass before our eyes, and we always look out of the same window.

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Within the Waves - Sanna Vaarni
Stradivarius Mar 2026
CD
$16.99

Mix & Match

Rubinstein: Cello Sonatas

Brilliant Classics

$12.99 Jan 30, 2026

Anton Rubinstein (1829-1894) was a towering figure in 19th-century music: a virtuoso pianist, conductor, composer, and educator whose influence extended well beyond his own works. Born in Russia, Rubinstein gained international fame as a pianist of almost legendary ability, rivaled only by Franz Liszt. He was also instrumental in establishing a Russian school of music, founding the St. Petersburg Conservatory in 1862, where he trained a new generation of composers and performers. As a composer, Rubinstein was remarkably prolific, writing symphonies, operas, chamber music, and countless works for piano. While his style is rooted in the German Romantic tradition, particularly Mendelssohn and Schumann, Rubinstein's music often reflects his own expansive temperament, with a combination of lyrical expressiveness and dramatic power. Among his chamber works, the two cello sonatas hold a special place. The Cello Sonata No.1 in D major, Op.18 (1852) reflects the youthful Rubinstein's energy and lyricism. Written in three movements, it showcases both the cello's singing qualities and the pianist's virtuosity. The writing is full of warmth, charm, and soaring Romantic melodies, though some critics have noted it's more traditional, German-influenced character. Still, it demonstrates Rubinstein's gift for crafting heartfelt, expressive music that gave performers a chance to shine. More ambitious is the Cello Sonata No.2 in G minor, Op.39 (1857), composed only five years later but revealing greater maturity and depth. Structured in four movements, it has a broader scope and darker, more dramatic character. The interplay between cello and piano is more intricate, with the instruments treated as equal partners. It's passionate themes, stormy climaxes, and lyrical slow movement make it a more compelling work, often considered Rubinstein's finest chamber composition. Though not as frequently performed today as works by Brahms or Chopin, Rubinstein's cello sonatas remain valuable contributions to the Romantic repertoire, offering a glimpse into the artistry of a composer who bridged Russian and European traditions. Played with passion and tenderness by Matilda Colliard and Stefano Ligoratti.

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Rubinstein: Cello Sonatas
Brilliant Classics Jan 2026
CD
$12.99

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Haydn: Piano Sonatas Volume IV / McCawley

SOMM Recordings

$20.99 Nov 19, 2021

SOMM Recordings is pleased to announce the fourth volume in Leon McCawley’s much praised series of Franz Joseph Haydn’s Piano Sonatas. Six Sonatas spanning the years 1766-80 are featured: the earliest the miniature First Sonata in G major, the latest the E flat major Sonata No.51, while Robert Matthew-Walker’s fascinating booklet note charts how deftly Haydn balanced the expectations of others and his own creative ambition. “Intended more to entertain than engage the intellect”, the fleet, divertimento-like First Sonata seems to anticipate the pedagogical leanings of Bartók’s Mikrokosmos more than a century and half later.With its unabashed galant style, the D major-led Sonata No.30 is ‘Papa’ Haydn at his most quicksilver brilliant and delightful, while Sonata No.35, in A flat major – “a masterpiece of piano writing” – displays striking characteristics of early Romanticism. Composed with the enhanced voice of the then newly available fortepiano in mind, sibling Sonatas Nos.48 (C major) and 49 (C sharp minor) maintain a winning Classical poise even as one surprise after another see Haydn pushing the sonata form in new and unexpected directions. Volume I (SOMMCD 0162) received a coveted Diapason d’Or from Diapason magazine, which enthused: “What a range in his interpretation and how many layers of gradation! McCawley ties these together in a special quality of inflexions which make their point with great intelligibility and sensitivity”. BBC Music Magazine declared Volume II (SOMMCD 0602) “should stand high on any list” of quality recordings of Haydn, adding “the sparkle of McCawley’s touch is instantly apparent”. Of Volume III (SOMMCD 0624) Gramophone hailed McCawley as “a thoughtful, keenly intelligent artist in peak form… [Haydn’s] piano works an inexhaustible source of artistic riches.”

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Haydn: Piano Sonatas Volume IV / McCawley
SOMM Recordings Nov 2021
CD
$20.99

Domenico Scarlatti: Complete Keyboard Sonatas, Vol. 2

Music and Arts Programs of America

$64.99 Jul 10, 2012

This is the second volume of our complete Scarlatti project - Volume I appeared on Music & Arts box set CD-1236 in April. New Classics [UK] wrote of that release: "Scarlatti's 555 keyboard sonatas are single movements, mostly in binary form.... Some of them display harmonic audacity in their use of discords, and also unconventional modulations to remote keys. They combine pure joyous sounds with the taut rhythms of Spanish dance and the harmonic brilliance of his Italian heritage to a degree that places him among the greatest musicians of all time. This first volume of the recordings of all of Scarlatti's sonatas, eloquently played on the Bösendorfer Imperial piano by Carlo Grante, is a splendid and fascinating undertaking: a journey through shared cultural experience, as well as one that explores the subtle thought processes of a highly influential musical genius." " "Sales Inventory

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Domenico Scarlatti: Complete Keyboard Sonatas, Vol. 2
Music and Arts Programs of America Jul 2012
CD
$64.99

BACH: SONATAS AND PARTIES

NONESUCH

$14.99 Nov 07, 2025

Nonesuch Records releases mandolin virtuoso Chris Thile's Bach: Sonatas and Partitas, Vol. 2 on November 7, 2025. The two-LP album comprises Partita No. 2 in D minor, BWV 1004; Sonata No. 3 in C major, BWV 1005; and Partita No. 3 in E major, BWV 1006. For his second recording of Bach Violin Sonatas and Partitas, twelve years after the first volume, Chris Thile opted for a more personal approach to the revered master composer's works. This time, he allowed himself to take liberties with the scores, which he recorded in multiple, somewhat untraditional, locations of personal significance: Reservoir Studios and Tompkins Square Park in New York City; Farrell Recital Hall at Murray State University in Murray, KY; and Blackberry Farm in Walland, TN.

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BACH: SONATAS AND PARTIES
NONESUCH Nov 2025
CD
$14.99

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