James Ehnes & Andrew Armstrong - Beethoven: Violin Sonatas Nos. 6 & 9 "Kreutzer" (2017)

The duo of old friends James Ehnes and Andrew Armstrong has established itself as one of the most exciting of our times. Their albums of violin sonatas by Franck & Strauss, and Debussy, Elgar & Respighi have been praised by critics worldwide. For this new album they turn to Beethoven and two A major sonatas with very different moods. The 9th, ‘Kreutzer’ sonata, is a huge work, heroic and turbulent in character – a kind of concerto for violin and piano. It is middle period Beethoven at its most dramatic. By contrast, the 6th sonata is a serene, introspective work of great beauty which has tended to be overlooked by its more outward-looking siblings. The intimacy of this sonata – especially the slow movement - is all the more surprising as the original finale was removed by the composer, to become the finale of the ‘Kreutzer’. Beethoven wrote the gentle variations to conclude the 6th sonata.

TARCKLIST
01. Violin Sonata No. 9 in A Major, Op. 47, 'Kreutzer': I. Adagio sostenuto
02. Violin Sonata No. 9 in A Major, Op. 47, 'Kreutzer': II. Andante con variazioni
03. Violin Sonata No. 9 in A Major, Op. 47, 'Kreutzer': III. Finale-Presto
04. Violin Sonata No. 6 in A Major, Op. 30/1: I. Allegro
05. Violin Sonata No. 6 in A Major, Op. 30/1: II. Adagio molto espressivo
06. Violin Sonata No. 6 in A Major, Op. 30/1: III. Allegretto con variazioni