Halvorsen & Haagenrud // The Café Concerts

There is music that impresses, and there is music that stays. This evening’s programme holds both, from Grieg’s youthful exuberance via Tchaikovsky’s lyrical miniatures to Brahms’ poetic and deeply human violin sonata. Edvard Grieg’s second violin sonata opens the concert with youthful power and nerve. Here Norwegian folk tune, Romantic glow and a lively interplay between violin and piano meet in music that alternates between the playful, the dramatic and the heartfelt. The sonata was written when Grieg was in his twenties, but already contains the distinctive tone that would later become unmistakably Grieg. From Tchaikovsky we get two of his most beautiful miniatures. Valse sentimentale and Mélodie are small musical stories, marked by singability, elegance and a yearning melancholy. Here the violin is allowed to sing freely, while the piano is an equally sensitive and expressive partner. After the interval comes Johannes Brahms’ first violin sonata, often called the “Rain Sonata”. The work is among the highlights of Romantic chamber music, imbued with warmth, reflection and a quiet intensity. Violin and piano meet as two equal voices in an ever-changing conversation, rich in nuance and long melodic lines. The sonata contains both light and melancholy, and ends the concert with a rare blend of calm, depth and hope. Programme: Edvard Grieg: Sonata No. 2 in G major, Op. 13 Pjotr Tsjajkovskij: Valse Sentimentale, Op. 51 No 6 Pjotr Tsjajkovskij: Mélodie, Op. 42 No. 3 Johannes Brahms: Sonata No. 1 in G major, Op. 78 Performers: Mari Birgitte Bølgen Halvorsen, violin Ole Christian Haagenrud, piano

RECORDINGS OF THE WORKS

Edvard Grieg: Fiolinsonate nr. 2 i G-dur, op. 13

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