To say that the “Kreutzer” Sonata of Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) is a key work of the violin literature is by no means an exaggeration. The composer himself described it on the score’s title sheet as a “Sonata for obbligato violin (sic!), written in a very concertante style.” The violinist Rodolphe Kreutzer, to whom it is dedicated, actually never performed it. The 30-minute-plus composition begins on a short, slow introduction after which Beethoven sets out to unleash in the first movement his usual sonic tempest in which the two instruments compete with each other in ever changing facets of virtuosity. The ensuing slow middle movement brings variations on a seemingly placid theme, after which comes a finale oscillating between playfulness and rage, wherein the composer manages to implant the occasional charmingly tender idea. The sonata, defying the conventional framework of its genre, inspired Leo Tolstoy’s novella The Kreutzer Sonata, dealing with the conflict between love and jealousy. Beyond that, to come full circle, the work’s history was yet added to by another musical composition, namely, Janáček’s String Quartet No. 1 inspired by Tolstoy’s Kreutzer Sonata.

Six bows at play means another two added to the string quartet combination – a format whose full sound will already evoke that of an orchestra. Tchaikovsky wrote his “Souvenir de Florence” sextet for the St Petersburg Chamber Music Society whose honorary member he had been made. He sketched its score in the heart of Tuscany, hence its title. Much rather than Italian local colour though, In the final analysis, however, this four-movement compositon is embued much rather with inspiration by Russian musical folklore than by any tangible reminiscences of Italian local colour. 

Text: Dita Hradecká