Virtuosity and togetherness

10 Oct 25

“Wrapping their virtuosity and togetherness around an ingeniously well-balanced programme of Mozart, Schumann and more besides, Ensemble 360’s pianist Tim Horton and violinist Claudia Ajmone-Marsan brought an evening of striking, exciting musical contrasts.”

Different moods and styles resulted not just from playing works by different composers but also within the works of each composer. As ever, interesting, chatty snippets explained how each composition fitted in with events going on in the composer’s live’s at the time.

First up were the two movements of Mozart’s Sonata in A, K 305, inspired by Joseph Schuster’s piano and violin duets and written in the same year as tonight’s other two Mozart pieces, 1777/78, when he was in Mannheim and Paris…

Next, with dramatically different tone and intriguing name – Robert Schumann’s F-A-E Sonata (Movt 2)… With soulful, tuneful lyricism, the short, touching, highly pleasing second movement was played tonight before everyone was suddenly propelled by a fast-forward into 1992.

“Witold Lutoslawski’s Subito was written in 1992 as a competition piece to challenge a violinist’s virtuosic excellence, in this case Claudia Ajmone-Marsan’s, though total togetherness in the technical mastery of this fabulously integrated score does involve both players, of course…”

Then back to Schumann. His Sonata for Violin and Piano in A Minor Op 105 was written in less than a week in 1851… Tuneful beauty and catchy motifs ebb and flow in the wonderful interplay and integration of the two instruments as passages travel from delicately quiet and thoughtful to urgently intense and turbulent in another very intimate piece.

Strong contrasts continued after the interval with two more Mozart sonatas and a Messiaen in the middle. Mozart’s Sonata for Violin and Piano in E Minor K 304…

Then it was back to the future again with Olivier Messiaen’s Theme and Variations (five) of 1932…

Finally, to send everyone dancing out the door on a high Mozart’s Sonata for Violin and Piano in G, K301 brought up the rear, completing this fabulous programme of pieces. Splendid stuff!