Paul Hindemith: Sonatas for Viola/Piano & Viola Alone (1988)

Paul Hindemith is without question, one of the 20th century's most industrious composers. One of his most famous accomplishments is that he successfully completed a sonata for every major instrument in the orchestra. Hindemith began his career as a violinist amid the turmoil of WWI, and he wrote by far more literature for the viola than any other composer in history. He had an early success becoming concertmaster of the Frankfort Opera Orchestra at the young age of 19. He later turned to viola in 1919, and it was to remain his favorite instrument for the rest of his life. Hindemith was the violist of the Amar Quartet, founded in 1921 for the premiere of the Second String Quartet. He later became known as a soloist in Europe, premiering his own viola works as well as the Milhaud Concerto No. 1 and the Walton Viola Concerto. When the Nazis expelled him from his post at the conservatory in Berlin and deprived him of his German audience due to his Jewish ties and the soprano-in-the-bathtub scene in the opera Neues vom Tage (News of the Day), which apparently shocked Hitler, Hindemith moved to Switzerland and made concert tours to the USA before emigrating there in early 1940.

Tracklist

Disc: 1

1. Sonate fur Viola Solo Op. 31 Nr. 4 (1924): Ausserst labhaft
2. Sonate fur Viola Solo Op. 31 Nr. 4 (1924): Lied - Ruhig, mit wenig Ausdruck
3. Sonate fur Viola Solo Op. 31 Nr. 4 (1924): Thema mit Variationen: Schnelle Viertel - Langsam - Ziemlich lebhaft
4. Sonate fur Viola Solo Op. 25 Nr. 1 (1922): Breit; Sehr frisch und straff
5. Sonate fur Viola Solo Op. 25 Nr. 1 (1922): Sehr langsam
6. Sonate fur Viola Solo Op. 25 Nr. 1 (1922): Rasendes Zeitmass. Wild. Tonschonheit ist Nebensache
7. Sonate fur Viola Solo Op. 25 Nr. 1 (1922): Langsam, mit veil Ausdruck
8. Sonate fur Viola Solo (1937): Lebhafte Halbe
9. Sonate fur Viola Solo (1937): Langsame Viertel - Lebhaft (pizzicato)
10. Sonate fur Viola Solo (1937): Massig schnelle Viertel
11. Sonate fur Viola Solo Op. 11 Nr. 5 (1919): Lebhaft, aber nicht geeilt
12. Sonate fur Viola Solo Op. 11 Nr. 5 (1919): Massig schnell, mit viel Warme vorgetragen
13. Sonate fur Viola Solo Op. 11 Nr. 5 (1919): Scherzo
14. Sonate fur Viola Solo Op. 11 Nr. 5 (1919): In Form und Zeitmass einer Passacaglia

Disc: 2

1. Sonate fur Viola und Piano Op. 11 Nr. 4 (1919): Phantasie
2. Sonate fur Viola und Piano Op. 11 Nr. 4 (1919): Thema mit Variationen
3. Sonate fur Viola und Piano Op. 11 Nr. 4 (1919): Finale mit Variationen
4. Sonate fur Viola und Piano Op. 25 Nr. 4 (1922): Sehr lebhaft, markiert und kraftvoll
5. Sonate fur Viola und Piano Op. 25 Nr. 4 (1922): Sehr langsame Viertel
6. Sonate fur Viola und Piano Op. 25 Nr. 4 (1922): Finale, lebhaft Viertel
7. Sonate fur Viola und Piano (1939): Briet, mit Kraft
8. Sonate fur Viola und Piano (1939): Sehr lebhaft
9. Sonate fur Viola und Piano (1939): Phantasie
10. Sonate fur Viola und Piano (1939): Finale

Kim Kashkashian, viola
Robert Levin, piano

Recorded 1985 and 1986
ECM New Series 1330-32