Erich Wolfgang Korngold (1897 -1957):
Violin Sonata in D Major, Op. 6
Piano Quintet in E Major, Op. 15
Korngold wrote his D major Violin Sonata, Opus 6, in 1913, when he was sixteen. It is an attractive work, with a lyrical first movement of considerable originality and occasional astringency, within a generally romantic texture. The second movement, an impetuous Scherzo, has a gently contrasted Trio, and this is followed by an expressive and rhapsodic slow movement and a graceful finale that includes episodes of a more robust character. The Piano Quintet in E major, Opus 15, was published by Schott in 1924. It opens with a romantically expressive first movement that still contains the necessarily cerebral element that counterpoint can add. This leads to a deeply felt slow movement of singular beauty, avoiding any suggestion of commonplace sentimentality and containing material of contrasting mood and texture, moving where Mahler had pointed. The last of the three movements opens dramatically and proceeds to an exciting conclusion. (NAXOS)
Released 1990.