Brahms: Violin Sonata No. 2 in A major, Op. 100 (Meistersinger Sonata)

“Brahms's Op 78 Violin Sonata, the first of his three, comes closer to a work of some wistfulness, the opening phrase taking on, with Nikolaj Znaider and Yefim Bronfman, a gentle melancholy that suits the music well. The hesitancy of this dotted phrase marks the whole of the sonata's invention, and is picked up with touching effect, as Clara Schumann was moved to find, when Brahms quotes an earlier song in the finale. This is all sensitively done.
So is the Second Sonata, with delightful touches: when the Andante gives way to a faster section, it is here played as gaily as a Brahms waltz, one that turns faintly spectral on its return with the pizzicato violin. Perhaps the finale, Presto agitato, deserves more extrovert agitation, but these are most thoughtful and sympathetic performances. There is also room on the disc for the lively scherzo which, as a young man, Brahms wrote for a composite sonata, with movements by Schumann and Albert Dietrich.” Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010

“…these are most thoughtful and sympathetic performances.” Gramophone Magazine, July 2007

“Remarkably the Mozart (in E flat) and Brahms (no. 2) feature Grumiaux playing both parts, with the violin over-dubbed - although you'd hardly guess apart from the exaggerated stereo separation.” BBC Music Magazine, April 2007 ****

“Capuçon and Angelich make a wonderfully well-matched team, with a command of genuine rubato (pressing forward in order to make room for subsequent holding back) that gives a truly authentic impression. Each detail of the music is expressively convincing: it seems that it's a priority for Angelich and Capuçon to feel the music. This can lead them sometimes to go against Brahms's expressed intentions. The theme at 3'18" in the first movement of Op 78 is marked to be in tempo (after a ritardando) but here the speed suddenly becomes faster, the dynamic much louder than the written pianissimo.
Similarly, in the Presto agitato finale of Op 108 the quieter passages are taken more slowly.
These are occasional lapses: overall the performances are beautifully considered, tending towards an expansive, romantic view of Brahms, but with a care for balance and proportion. The FAE Scherzo, for example, has all the necessary youthful exuberance, but it's coupled with a fine feeling for balance between the parts and for rhythmic character. And, throughout, there's a magnificent sense of line: Capuçon plays the great G-string melodies in Op 108's Adagio and Op 100's finale with rich, opulent sound but his vibrato is never too prominent – the most important thing is the shape of the melody.” Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010

“…I enjoyed the A major, and was even more enthused by the D minor. …Capuçon and Nicholas Angelich are absolutely inside the music, completely responsive to the play of expressive light and shade, and the way this goes hand in glove with the unmatched intricacy and vitality of Brahms's rhythmic sense.” BBC Music Magazine, October 2005

Choc du Monde de la Musique & The Times Top 100

“If anyone doubts that these three sonatas represent Brahms at his most blissfully lyrical, then this is an essential set to hear. The trouble-free happiness of these mellow inspirations, all written after the main body of Brahms's orchestral music had been completed, comes over richly and seductively in these fine performances. In their sureness and flawless confidence, they carry you along cocooned in rich sound. Perlman consistently produces rich, full-bodied tone, an excellent illustration being the way that he evokes a happy, trouble-free mood in the melody which opens the second movement Adagio of No 3. The obverse of this is that with such consistent richness and warmth, the three sonatas come to sound more alike than they usually do, or maybe should, a point which comes out the more from playing them in sequence. It's true that Perlman does quite often play softly, but for some tastes he's placed too close to the microphone, and the actual dynamic level stays rather high, however gently he's playing. This isn't to say that with sharp imagination and superbly clean articulation from the pianist, these performances lack range of expression – in particular, there's the rhythmic pointing, which gives a Hungarian or a Slavonic tang to such passages as the first contrasting episode in the 'raindrop' finale of No 1 or the contrasting Vivace passages in the second movement of No-2, where the last pizzicato reprise is made totally delectable. These performances are both distinctive and authoritative. The recording is bright, with a good sense of atmosphere to give bite to the piano tone without diminishing the warmth of Perlman's violin.” Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010