Classical Music | Violin Music

Recorded on 07/01/2008, uploaded on 01/15/2009

Musician's or Publisher's Notes

Like many composers of the 19^th century, Richard Strauss produced a fair amount of chamber music in his earlier years as a composer, touching upon the major genres of the string quartet, the piano trio and quartet, and the solo sonata. However, with the composition of his Sonata for Violin in E-flat major in 1887, Strauss curiously exited, for the most part, the world of chamber music. Throughout the remainder of his career, he produced little that was of considerable import, and even less that were truly original compositions. Nevertheless, Strauss’s sudden adieu to chamber music is a worthy piece in its own right, and though it may not be ranked with the greatest essays in the genre from composers such as Beethoven and Brahms, it is nonetheless frequently performed and recorded.

The composition of the Sonata for Violin more or less overlaps with that of the symphonic fantasy Aus Italien and the tone poem Don Juan, as well as the beginning of his love affair with the operatic soprano Pauline de Ahna, whom he would later marry, and all three influences can be heard in the luscious melodies and beautiful lyricism of the piece. Despite being a sonata written by a composer aligned with the so-called “New German School” of the great feud that engulfed classical music in the latter half of the 19^th century, it is a rather Classically designed piece, laid out in three movements, as opposed to the four-movement symphonic structure that had become commonplace, and which follow the usual ordering.

The first movement, in the usual sonata form, opens with a heroic idea announced by the piano, answered by the violin, and later followed by a beautifully lyrical second subject in the dominant key. Following this dramatic first movement, the middle Andante cantabile is further marked as an “improvisation.” Curiously, the movement displays little of what might be considered “improvisatory,” but is instead a hauntingly beautiful movement, led by the violin’s enchanting song, and carried along by a superb craftsmanship. The piano gives an eerie Andante introduction to open the Finale, before erupting into a heroic Allegro, and is soon after joined by eruptions of joy from the soloist in the form of rising sixteenth-note passages. The movement is pervaded by a sense of urgency, but it is not without its moments of lyrical beauty that recall the tone of the previous movements. With fervent energy and a final statement of the opening theme, the sonata comes to a heroic, symphonic ending.        Joseph DuBose

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Sonata for Violin in E-flat major, Op. 18                   Richard Strauss

I. Allegro ma non troppo; II. Improvisation: Andante Cantabile; III. Finale: Andante - Allegro

Strauss's early musical instruction, under the supervision of his father, focused on the works of Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, and Schubert. The senior Strauss detested Wagner, who was then considered avant-garde and on the cutting-edge. It is a great irony that Richard Strauss later became a strong supporter and interpreter of Wagner's music.

We do not think of Strauss as a prodigy yet it is clear that he was one. By the time he was 16, he was a published and a performed composer.  Strauss' violin sonata was written when he was barely 23 and stands at a juncture in his composing life.  Brahms and Beethoven influenced his very early works, and he was at this point moving towards Liszt and Wagner, who would be compositional models the rest of his life.

Strauss composed the Violin Sonata under the romantic spell of Pauline de Ahna, who later became his wife. The work is full of youthful energy, hope, and anticipation. The ardent fervor of the song-like lines is evident, especially in the second movement, which often reminds the listener of the songs and operas that were to come later in Strauss's career. The second movement is also a disguised homage to Beethoven - using form, motifs, melodies, key structure derived from that master.      Tessa Lark

Courtesy of International Music Foundation.