The F.A.E. Sonata was a collaborative work by Robert Schumann, Johannes Brahms, and Albert Dietrich (a Schumann student), written in 1853 for their friend Joseph Joachim (a violinist).
Instruments
Alexander Melnikov plays on a Bösendorfer piano from 1875, which is part of his personal collection.
Critical Reception
The F.A.E. Sonata was not published in its original four-movement form until 1935 and is still rarely performed in full, due to the poor reputation of collective musical works.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Brahms intensely studied Ludwig van Beethoven's works, incorporating them into his concert programs and using their 'stern ethical character' as a standard for his own compositions.
Instruments
Isabelle Faust performs on a 1704 Stradivarius violin named 'Sleeping Beauty', on loan from the L-Bank of Baden-Württemberg, Germany.
Compositional Technique
The F.A.E. Sonata's thematic material for three of its four movements was inspired by the motto 'frei, aber einsam' (free but lonely), which was the dedicatee Joseph Joachim's life motto.
Composer Biography
Johannes Brahms was a 'late developer' in several central musical genres, completing his first string quartet at forty and his first symphony in 1876.
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Brahms: Violin Sonatas Nos. 1-3
Brahms: Violin Sonatas
Brahms: Violin Sonatas Nos. 1-3, Opp. 78, 100 and 108
