Andrew Wan and Charles Richard-Hamelin perform Schumann's complete Sonatas for piano and violin

Andrew Wan, concertmaster of the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal, and Charles Richard-Hamelin, prizewinner at the prestigious Chopin International Piano Competition, join forces to perform Schumann's complete Sonatas for piano and violin, at Montreal's Salle Bourgie!

Composed in 1851, the Sonata No. 1 in A minor did not entirely satisfy its composer. At the time of its premiere, Schumann criticized its overemphasis on the lower register of the instruments, a device that contributes to the piece's uniqueness. To remedy this, he composed his Sonata No. 2 in D minor a few months later, which he dedicated to the violinist Ferdinand David. His Sonata No. 3 in A minor was completed in 1853, one of the final works the legendary composer completed before his health deteriorated irrevocably. This score incorporates the intermezzo and finale of the F.A.E. Sonata, a composition resulting from Schumann's collaboration with his pupil Albert Hermann Dietrich and his friend Johannes Brahms. Intended for the violinist Joseph Joachim, it is built around the notes F-A-E, echoing the musician's motto “Frei aber einsam” (free but alone). That same year, Joachim took part, alongside Clara Schumann, in the Düsseldorf premiere of Sonata No. 2 in D minor.