Music Chamber

W.A. Mozart Violin Sonata in G Major KV301        Allegro con spirito ~ Allegro

 

In 1777, after coming across 6 duets for keyboard and violin by Joseph Schuster in which both instruments had equal voices, Mozart sent the scores to his sister saying that he would like to write 6 in the same style. This was the first and a definite departure from his earlier violin sonatas which clearly favored the fortepiano / cembalo. The instruments are no longer interchangeable and are, for the most part, on equal footing. It opens with a delicate yet joyous melody played by the violin. The piano and the violin exchange the dominating lines for the majority of the movement except when both instruments occasionally double each other. The keyboard takes the opening theme in the 2nd movement, the mood  dance-like and a gracious charm prevails throughout. The middle-section, in minor mode, offers a starker atmosphere in the form of a Sicilienne - somber and nostalgic yet ever so graceful.

 

L van Beethoven Piano Sonata in E Major Op 14/1       Allegro ~ Allegretto ~ Rondo: Allegro comodo

 

The E Major sonata, Op.14, is one of Beethoven’s loveliest works. Written in 1798, it belongs with the G Major, Op 14/2, which shares its generally sunny approach. Interestingly Beethoven arranged this work for string quartet, and it is easy to hear why it suited this so well. The part writing is clear and transparent, and there is an ease to the style well-suited to chamber music. After the song-like first movement, an Allegretto places us in E Minor, but the movement is not dark or dramatic, more full of yearning. A simple C Major section leading us back to the minor. The finale returns us to the mood of the first movement, a distinctive right hand rising against the falling triplets of the left. After a brief outburst on the final page, the theme returns, this time more questioning and gentle, and the abrupt modesty of the conclusion seems in keeping with the lyricism and innocence of the work as a whole. (notes by Simon)

 

Alfred Schnittke Suite Im Alten Stil (Suite In The Old Style) for Violin and Piano

Pastorale ~ Ballett ~ Menuett ~ Fuge ~ Pantomime

 

 

Niccolò Paganini Centone di Sonata in A Minor MS112

 

Anna began her musical studies in Ireland before training at the Yehudi Menuhin School and the Royal College of Music in London. Whilst at the College she studied with Itzhak Rashkovsky and was awarded many prizes including the college’s prestigious Mills Williams Junior Fellowship and the Tagore Gold Medal which was presented to her by Prince Charles. She also won the Raymond Fox Bursary from the UKs ‘Making Music Society’ and the Serena Neville prize from the Concordia Foundation. She has given concerts in venues such as the Wigmore Hall, the Forbidden City concert Hall in Beijing and at the Banff Institute of Music in Canada. With her sister Sophie she performs in the Cashell Duo and they are currently represented by Music Network Ireland. Anna has performed as a soloist with many orchestras in Ireland and the UK, such as The National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland and Camerata Ireland conducted by Barry Douglas. Chamber music is one of Anna’s passions; she performs regularly with her brother and sister in the Cashell trio. She is also a founding member of the Schumann String Quartet and a member of the Irish Chamber Orchestra. This year she has been invited to perform at the International Musicians Seminar Open Chamber Music Sessions at Prussia Cove. Anna currently plays on a Bernard Simon Fendt Violin purchased with the support of The Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, The Arts Council and Music Network through the Music Capital Scheme 2011.

 

Simon was born in Wirral, in North West England. He studied at the Purcell School of Music with Patsy Toh, and at the Royal College of Music with Yonty Solomon. At the RCM he won a number of prizes, including the Marmaduke Barton Piano Prize, and the annual Beethoven Competition. In his final year he won the Hopkinson Silver Medal at the Chappell Medal Competition, where he was also awarded the Esther Fisher Prize for best undergraduate performance. Past appearances include performances at Wigmore Hall and St. John's Smith Square. In 2005 he won the Piano Prize at the Haverhill Sinfonia Soloists Competition. In May 2006, as result of further competitive success at the Marlow Music Festival, he performed Mozart's Piano Concerto in A Major, K488, at Cadogan Hall, with Southbank Sinfonia. He was recently featured as a Rising Star in the International Piano Quarterely magazine, and in April 2010 was awarded the British Music Prize at the inaugural Sussex International Piano Competition. In the same year he also completed a cycle of the complete piano sonatas of Beethoven here in Notting Hill. Future performances together with Anna include concerts in London, Ireland, Spain and China. He has recently given a recital at Hurstwood Farm in Kent, where he will soon record his first CD.