DCD34316-CD

Maier | Franck | Schumann: Sonatas for Violin & Piano

Duo Concertante bring a reputation for emotionally engaged, stylistically insightful playing to their compelling exploration of the Romantic violin sonata – a form uniquely suited to personal expression and intimate dialogue.

 

Robert Schumann’s Sonata No. 1, written in just four days in 1851, pushes against Classical restraint with restless intensity and a raw vulnerability that would influence generations of Romantic composers. Amanda Maier’s Sonata in B minor, composed two decades later and awarded a prize by the Swedish Art Music Society, blends a Schumannesque inheritance with her own voice: equal parts lyrical poise and structural clarity. And in César Franck’s beloved A major sonata, formal ingenuity and sweeping expressivity combine in one of the great pinnacles of the violin-and-piano repertoire.

 

'Nancy Dahn and Timothy Steeves lead from a musing, dreamy opening into a colourful drama. The violin is to the fore in the recorded balance of the second-movement Allegro, emotionally impusive, played with gusto and rhytmic freedom. It is powerful, heart-on-sleeve performance.'

'The duo's elegant playing captures every nuance, from moments of wistful reflection to passages of dramatic intensity. The rhythmic energy never flags, while the emotional elements shine through with affecting directness.

Throughout, the chemistry between Steeves's sensitive piano accompaniments and Dahn's eloquent melodic lines remains captivating. Their rhythmic energy and emotional insight illuminate music that might elsewhere seem merely dutiful.'

READ THE FULL REVIEW HERE

‘The first movement of the Schumann is marked 'with passionate expression’, and Dahn’s tone is certainly full and vibrant...The lilt of the second movement has real charm, and the alternating lightness and lyricism of the final rondo flow dexterously.’

Release Date: 22 August, 2025
Recorded on 20-22 May 2024 in Greyfriars Kirk,
Edinburgh
Producer & engineer: Paul Baxter
24-bit digital editing: Jack Davis
24-bit digital mastering: Paul Baxter

Design: Eliot Garcia
Booklet editor: Henry Howard
Cover photo: Tim Leyes
Session photography: Will Coates-Gibson/
Foxbrush


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PREVIEW

César Franck:Violin Sonata in A Major: iii. Recitativo-Fantasia

Apple Music Style Audio Player

Album Booklet

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