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Masterclass: violist Tabea Zimmermann on Hindemith Sonata for solo viola op.25 no.1

2024-06-12T08:03:00

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Zimmermann shares a lyrical approach to a characterful, multifaceted work, in this article from April 2015

Paul Hindemith (1895–1963) wrote this sonata for himself in 1922 – apparently rather quickly. He left the first and fifth movements for a train ride between Frankfurt and Cologne, then performed the completed piece in Cologne that evening. It was intended as an easier alternative to the far more difficult Sonata for solo viola op.11 no.5, and he played it frequently between 1922 and 1932, performing it 58 times. He dedicated the work to Ladislav Černý, violist of the Zika Quartet, whom he met at the Donaueschingen Festival in south-west Germany in the summer of 1922. It is a major repertoire piece for viola players and a good example of Hindemith’s musical ideas…

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