NIKOLAJ SZEPS-ZNAIDER / KIRILL GERSTEIN
One is a violinist and conductor, the other a pianist and teacher, and both enjoy remarkable careers across the globe. These exceptional artists come together for the first time at Verbier for a recital dedicated to the great Romantic masters, Schubert and Brahms, and to Kreisler’s dazzling virtuosity.
Programme
FRANZ SCHUBERT (1797-1828)
Sonatina in D major D. 384
JOHANNES BRAHMS (1833-1897)
Violin Sonata No. 1 in G major Op. 78
Interval
FRITZ KREISLER (1875-1962)
Selection of Melodies
Nikolaj Szeps-Znaider plays Bach : Ich ruf zu dir, BWV 639 (Orchestre national de Lyon)
The fullness that emanates from Brahms’s First Sonata contrasts with the fiery temperament of his other compositions. Finding in it a simplicity that is also present in his Trio Op.8, even its Finale, with its deceptively threatening airs, ends in gentleness and comfort.
Schubert’s adorable Sonatina retains this same simplicity, pouring it into a humorous form reminiscent of Mozart. Freed from its virtuoso dimension, the writing returns to the essentials: a playful exchange between two instruments, where the beauty of the melody and rhetoric take centre stage.
This impeccable gallant style has survived the years, reaching Fritz Kreisler, the irresistible Viennese virtuoso and true star of the violin of his time. From his famous Liebesleid to Caprice Viennois, he speaks the language of the violin better than anyone else. Perhaps, with Nikolaj Szeps-Znaider and Kirill Gerstein, we will sense the shadow of the legendary duo that Kreisler formed with a certain Rachmaninoff some 100 years earlier.