Janacek: Violin Sonata

Janáček, Smetana, Prokofiev – Josef Špaček’s “Slavonic debut”.

Still only 26, the violinist Josef Špaček has already covered an enormous amount of ground. After completing his studies at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, he attended Itzhak Perlman’s class at the Juilliard School in New York, and he has given solo performances under the baton of outstanding conductors (Bělohlávek, Eschenbach, Honeck, Hrůša).

In 2009 he won the Michael Hill International Violin Competition (New Zealand), in May 2012 he became a laureate of the closely observed Queen Elisabeth Competition in Brussels and in the same year led the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra as concert master at the chief conductor Jiří Bělohlávek’s inauguration concerts. For his Supraphon debut, Josef Špaček has chosen works by Slavonic composers. The two duets from Smetana’s From My Homeland are considered the counterpart to his cycle My Country, while Janáček’s Sonata, which was introduced to the world by Paul Hindemith as a soloist, is evidently the most frequently performed Czech violin sonata. And when it comes to Prokofiev, the Russian master’s music is a truly heartfelt matter for Špaček (as a soloist, he has executed both of his concertos). The pianist Miroslav Sekera is a wonderful partner to Špaček on the recording, as are the superb and inspiring acoustics of the Dvořák Hall of Prague’s Rudolfinum.

This programme comprises three major 20th-century chamber works, all of them deeply rooted in the musical world of Central Europe.

The pieces by Janac•ek and Szymanowski are exactly contemporary. Composed respectively at the beginning and the end of the 20th century, Szymanowski's 'Mythes' and Lutoslawski's 'Partita' constitute two landmarks of Polish music.

Hagai Shaham and Arnon Erez have been enthusiastically acclaimed for their dazzling duo performances: their infectiously relaxed bravado and continual flexibility belying their impeccable ensemble. For their latest disc they turn to two composers who are seminal figures in the development of Eastern European music during the early twentieth century.

Dohnányi was one of the pivotal figures in Hungary’s musical life. He composed a number of significant pieces for the violin, including two violin concertos; his most important chamber work for violin and piano is the Violin Sonata in C sharp minor Op 21, composed in 1912. Dohnányi was by then thirty-five years of age, and the Sonata is a fully mature work showing his individual development of stylistic traits of Brahms and Liszt combined with a structural economy which reflects the close study of Brahms’s sonatas. Also recorded here is Dohnányi’s most overtly folk-influenced work, Ruralia hungarica, and a movement from his First Orchestral Suite, in F sharp minor Op 19, Romanza, arranged as a thoroughly idiomatic piece for violin and piano by Jascha Heifetz.

In the first days of World War I Dohnányi’s native Hungary was invaded by the Russian army, which seemed for a time to herald the end of Austrian dominance in the region. This portentous event provided the creative spark for Leoš Janácek’s Violin Sonata (his only surviving violin sonata; two very early ones he composed in Dresden and Vienna in 1880 are lost), at least according to Janácek himself. Other works by Janácek heard in this recital include early pieces from his student years, and an arrangement of the delicate mood study ‘A blown-away Leaf’ from the celebrated piano work On the Overgrown Path.

The Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra's leader Frank Almond steps forth with a robust recital recording of three 20th-century sonatas by composers primarily known for their mastery of the orchestra. These works by Strauss, Respighi and Janácek were all written within 30 years of each other, yet inhabit three distinct musical worlds.

Juilliard graduate Almond is one of the youngest prizewinners in the history of the Paganini Competition in Genoa, Italy. Prior to moving to Milwaukee, he held positions as leader of the Rotterdam and London Philharmonic Orchestras. He was also a prizewinner at the Tchaikovsky Competition, as was his collaborator William Wolfram, who also picked up medals in both the William Kapell and the Naumberg International Piano Competitions.

On this recording, the French violinist Louise Chisson presents major violin sonatas of the 20th century. Whereas Poulenc’s and Prokofiev’s sonatas date from the Second World War, Leoš Janáček’s sonata was written in 1914, at the beginning of the First World War. The works evince Impressionist elements, stylistic ruptures and a preparation of Modernism. Against the backdrop of the dates of composition of these works, it is surprising that there is also scope for lightness and beauty besides death, gloom and despair. Together with the Georgian pianist Tamara Atschba, Chisson effortless manages to walk a tightrope and convey the most expressive emotions from the darkest years of the past century.