Schumann: Violin Sonatas Alina Ibragimova & Cédric Tiberghien

• Robert Schumann (1810 - 1856): Violin Sonata No. 1 in A Minor, Op. 105:
• 1 Schumann: Violin Sonata No. 1 in A Minor, Op. 105: I. Mit leidenschaftlichem Ausdruck 08:18
• 2 Schumann: Violin Sonata No. 1 in A Minor, Op. 105: II. Allegretto 03:51
• 3 Schumann: Violin Sonata No. 1 in A Minor, Op. 105: III. Lebhaft 05:08
• Violin Sonata No. 2 in D Minor, Op. 121:
• 4 Schumann: Violin Sonata No. 2 in D Minor, Op. 121: I. Ziemlich langsam – Lebhaft 14:16
• 5 Schumann: Violin Sonata No. 2 in D Minor, Op. 121: II. Sehr lebhaft 04:21
• 6 Schumann: Violin Sonata No. 2 in D Minor, Op. 121: III. Leise, einfach 06:13
• 7 Schumann: Violin Sonata No. 2 in D Minor, Op. 121: IV. Bewegt 09:19
• Violin Sonata No. 3 in A Minor, WoO 2 (27):
• 8 Schumann: Violin Sonata No. 3 in A Minor, WoO 2 (27): I. Ziemlich langsam – [Lebhaft] 07:11
• 9 Schumann: Violin Sonata No. 3 in A Minor, WoO 2 (27): II. Intermezzo. Bewegt, doch nicht zu schnell 03:18
• 10 Schumann: Violin Sonata No. 3 in A Minor, WoO 2 (27): III. Lebhaft 03:15
• 11 Schumann: Violin Sonata No. 3 in A Minor, WoO 2 (27): IV. Finale. Markiertes, ziemlich lebhaftes Tempo 06:36
• Total Runtime 01:11:46

Info for Schumann: Violin Sonatas

The critical reception of Schumann’s violin sonatas—like that of much of the composer’s late output—has vacillated over the course of the intervening centuries. Written for and first performed by some of the leading violinists of the day, all three are now recognized for the masterpieces they undoubtedly are, needing no apology: and we are fortunate indeed to be in a position to enjoy such dedicated performances as these.

13 September 1853: the morning of Clara Schumann’s thirty-fourth birthday. Her husband of thirteen years apologized that she would have to wait for her present. They went out for the day—visiting the baroque palace at Benrath and drinking champagne—and returned for Clara to find in their music room a new piano, strewn with flowers. Students performed ‘Die Orange und Myrthe hier’, Robert Schumann’s setting of his own poem as a part-song with piano accompaniment, also known as ‘Bei Schenkung eines Flügels’ (‘On the gift of a piano’), WoO26 No 4. ‘Die Kunst sie bleib Dir werth!’ reads one line—‘May art remain worthy of you!’ Of all the birthday gifts the Schumanns gave each other, the presentation of the piano marked the beginning of an especially enjoyable and productive period, within which the three violin sonatas composed by Robert Schumann played a prominent role.

The following week, Joseph Joachim turned up unexpectedly to play through Robert Schumann’s new Phantasie, Op 131, for violin and orchestra. Joachim and Clara also performed Robert’s Violin Sonata No 1 in A minor, Op 105, as they had the previous May in the piano house Klems, the makers of her birthday present, which she now enjoyed playing. In July, Clara had returned to composition and completed Drei Romanzen, Op 22, which she dedicated to Joachim. The first of these pieces for violin and piano alludes to the opening melody of Robert’s first violin sonata, suggesting the tightening bonds between the three musicians.

Joachim told the Schumanns about a young composer he had become friends with over the summer, who would come to call on them soon. Robert Schumann may have already met Johannes Brahms in 1850, in Hamburg, but the teenager at that stage made little impression. On his arrival in Düsseldorf at the end of September 1853, however, Brahms made more of an impact. Schumann’s daughter Marie remembered finding at their door a handsome young man, with long fair hair. Her parents were out but Brahms was instructed to return the next day before noon. He returned, armed with letters of introduction and his soon-to-be-published compositions. As he began to play, Robert Schumann interrupted, saying: ‘Please wait a moment; I must call my wife!’ ...

Alina Ibragimova, violin
Cedric Tiberghien, piano

Alina Ibragimova
Performing music from Baroque to new commissions on both modern and period instruments, Alina Ibragimova has established a reputation for versatility and the ‘immediacy and honesty’ (The Guardian) of her performances.

Alina has performed with orchestras including the Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks, London Philharmonic, Chamber Orchestra of Europe, Swedish Radio Symphony, Seattle Symphony, Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin and Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich; and conductors Vladimir Jurowski, Sir John Eliot Gardner, Jakub Hrůša, Robin Ticciati, Daniel Harding, Edward Gardner and the late Bernard Haitink, among others.

In recital, Alina has appeared at the Southbank Centre, Royal Concertgebouw, Salzburg Mozarteum, Vienna Musikverein, Carnegie Hall and Pierre Boulez Saal, as well as the Royal Albert Hall, where she performed Bach’s violin sonatas and partitas as part of the BBC Proms. Her longstanding partnership with pianist Cédric Tiberghien has seen the duo tour worldwide and win acclaim for their performances of sonatas by Mozart and Beethoven, both live and on record. Alina is a founding member of the Chiaroscuro Quartet, one of the most sought-after period ensembles.

Alina’s discography on Hyperion Records ranges from Bach concertos with Arcangelo through to Prokofiev sonatas with Steven Osborne. Her 2020 album of Shostakovich violin concertos with Vladimir Jurowski and the State Academic Symphony Orchestra of Russia ‘Evgeny Svetlanov’ won a Gramophone Award and Diapason d’Or, and was one of The Times’s Discs of the Year. Her 2021 recording of Paganini’s 24 Caprices topped the classical charts upon its release.

Born in Russia in 1985, Alina studied at the Moscow Gnessin School before moving in 1995 to the UK, where she attended the Yehudi Menuhin School and Royal College of Music. Her teachers have included Natasha Boyarsky, Gordan Nikolitch and Christian Tetzlaff, and the Baroque specialist Adrian Butterfield. Alina’s many awards include the 2011 RPS Young Artist Award, the 2008 Borletti-Buitoni Trust Award and the 2009 Classical BRIT Young Performer of the Year Award. An alumna of the BBC New Generation Artists scheme, she was made an MBE in the 2016 New Year Honours List. Alina is grateful to the Jumpstart Jr. Foundation for their kind loan of the 1570 Amati violin.

Cédric Tiberghien
is a French pianist who has established a truly international career. He has been particularly applauded for his versatility, as demonstrated by his wide-ranging repertoire, interesting programming, an openness to explore innovative concert formats and his dynamic chamber-music partnerships.

Recent debuts include performances with the Berliner Philharmoniker, San Francisco Symphony and NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra. Cédric has recently performed with the Boston Symphony, Cleveland, Czech Philharmonic, London Symphony and Tokyo Philharmonic orchestras, the Orchestre national de France, and at the BBC Proms with Les Siècles; and with conductors Karina Canellakis, Nicholas Collon, Stéphane Denève, Edward Gardner, Enrique Mazzola, Ludovic Morlot, Matthias Pintscher, François-Xavier Roth and Simone Young.

Cédric is a dedicated chamber musician, with regular partners including violinist Alina Ibragimova, violist Antoine Tamestit and baritone Stéphane Degout. He and Alina first met as members of the BBC Radio 3 New Generation Artists scheme in 2005, and they have since performed together at major venues throughout Europe and North America, and have undertaken extensive tours to Australia and Asia. Their discography includes complete cycles of music by Schubert, Beethoven, Szymanowski and Ravel, and their recent survey of the Mozart sonatas was awarded the Preis der deutschen Schallplattenkritik.

Cédric recently presented a major focus on the music of Bartók, which culminated in a three-volume exploration of the composer’s solo piano works, released on Hyperion Records to huge critical acclaim. Cédric’s solo discography also includes music by Chopin, Liszt and Szymanowksi, Franck’s Variations symphoniques and Les Djinns, and Brahms’s Piano Concerto No 1 in D minor. He has been awarded five Diapasons d’Or for his solo and duo recordings on Hyperion.

Booklet for Schumann: Violin Sonatas