Sonatas for Viola and Piano, Vol. 2

Featuring

Tabea Zimmermann
Kirill Gerstein
Johannes Brahms
Franz Schubert
César Franck

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Composition History

Schubert's Arpeggione Sonata was a commissioned work for a new instrument called the arpeggione, a hybrid between a cello and a guitar, which was played like a cello but looked and was tuned like a guitar.

Performer Biography

Tabea Zimmermann, one of the world's leading viola players, received the prestigious Echo Klassik as 'Instrumentalist of the Year' in 2010.

Composition History

Brahms' two sonatas Op. 120, including the F minor sonata on this album, were his last chamber works and were inspired by the playing of clarinettist Richard Mühlfeld.

Composition History

Franck's Sonata for Violin and Piano was dedicated to Eugène Ysaÿe, a prominent violinist, and was presented as a wedding gift, with Ysaÿe spontaneously performing it during the celebrations.

Album & Artwork

This album, "Sonatas for Viola & Piano Vol. 2", is a continuation of a collaboration between Kirill Gerstein and Tabea Zimmermann, following a previous album that included Brahms' E-flat major sonata.

Performer Biography

Kirill Gerstein, born in Russia, began his jazz studies at Boston's Berklee College of Music at age 14, making him the youngest student in the school's history.

Composition History

All three sonatas on this album were composed in the final years of their respective composers' lives and were originally written for instruments other than the viola.