Schnittke: Violin Sonata No. 1, Strauss: Violin Sonata, Haydn: Violin Sonata No. 1 - Sasha Rozhdestvensky, Viktoria Postnikova / Chandos Audio CD 1994 / CHAN 9274

UPC 095115927427

Alfred Garrievich Schnittke (24 November 1934 – 3 August 1998) was a Russian composer. Among the most performed and recorded composers of late 20th-century classical music, he is described by musicologist Ivan Moody as a "composer who was concerned in his music to depict the moral and spiritual struggles of contemporary man in [...] depth and detail."

Schnittke's early music shows the strong influence of Dmitri Shostakovich. He developed a polystylistic technique in works such as the epic Symphony No. 1 (1969–1972) and his first concerto grosso (1977). In the 1980s, Schnittke's music began to become more widely known abroad with the publication of his second (1980) and third (1983) string quartets and the String Trio (1985); the ballet Peer Gynt (1985–1987); the third (1981), fourth (1984), and fifth (1988) symphonies; and the viola concerto (1985) and first cello concerto (1985–1986). As his health deteriorated, Schnittke's music started to abandon much of the extroversion of his polystylism and retreated into a more withdrawn, bleak style.

Tracklist:

JOSEPH HAYDN (1732-1809)

Sonata in G major in G-Dur; en sol majeur   14:25

1.  I  Allegro   7:02

2.  II  Andante    7:21

RICHARD STRAUSS (1864-1949)

Sonata in E flat major Op. 18 in Es-Dur; en mi majeur    28:23

3.  I  Allegromanon troppo   10:42

4.  II  Improvisation. Andante cantabile    9:16

5.  III Finale. Andante - Allegro    8:18

ALFRED SCHNITTKE (b 1934)

Sonata No. 1   19:57

6.  I  Andante    3:15

7.  II  Allegretto   5:59

8.  III Largo   4:53

9.  IV Allegretto scherzando - Largo    5:45

• Violin - Sasha Rozhdestvensky
• Piano - Viktoria Postnikova