Janine Jansen, Violin
Jean-Yves Thibaudet, Piano

Debussy takes flight for the last time, Grieg spices his sonata with Norwegian flavors, and Chausson creates a miniature concerto. Debussy was terminally ill when he composed his Violin Sonata, but the music’s verve and light speak of happier times. The light in Grieg’s Violin Sonata No. 2 is derived from Norwegian folk music and dance that animate its opening and closing movements. In Chausson’s rarely performed masterpiece, passages for solo violin and piano alternate and combine with the string quartet, themes cycle from movement to movement, and melodies soar.

Mitsuko Uchida, Piano

Mitsuko Uchida begins her two-season exploration of Schubert piano sonatas. Beethoven’s presence hovers about Schubert’s C-Minor Sonata, a large-scaled work of restless spirit and austere beauty, while the A-Major Sonata’s genial songlike melodies and relaxed tone recall the composer’s “Trout” Quintet. The Sonata in G Major—a favorite of Schumann’s—is a work of meditative grandeur in which the outward suggestion of a timeless waltz gives way to an expansive and deeply affecting landscape.

Itzhak Perlman, Violin
Pinchas Zukerman, Violin and Viola
Rohan De Silva, Piano

Please note that Martha Argerich has withdrawn from her duo-recital with violinist Itzhak Perlman due to family and health problems. Mr. Perlman will now offer a new program with longtime collaborators violinist and violist Pinchas Zukerman, and pianist Rohan De Silva.

It’s a meeting of superstars when violinist Itzhak Perlman and violinist-violist Pinchas Zukerman perform music that spans the Baroque to Bartók, as well as a few surprises. Perlman, “indisputably one of the great violinists” (The Guardian), and Zukerman, praised for his “pristine technique and honest musicianship” (Los Angeles Times), are longtime friends and musical partners who bring virtuosity and joy to every performance.

Daniil Trifonov, Piano
Gautier Capuçon, Cello
Kremerata Baltica

The legato lines, delicate ornamentations, and colors that grace Chopin’s solo piano works are also found in his music for other instruments. There is not a single composition by him that does not involve the keyboard, including a small handful of works that prominently feature the cello. The Introduction and Polonaise brillante and Cello Sonata in G Minor are two of these rarities. While the former is a sparkling showpiece, the latter is an intense, highly emotive work. One of his early compositions, Chopin’s Piano Concerto No. 2 is also noteworthy for its Romantic middle movement and rollicking finale: a zesty Polish mazurka.