“These three works are among my very best and represent different stages in my development: the first, naïve and rich in ideals; the second, nationalistic; and the third with a wider horizon.”
Leaving aside Peer Gynt and his epic Piano Concerto Norwegian composer Edvard Grieg believed his trio of beloved violin sonatas ranked among his finest achievements. As he rightly notes in the quote above, the trio of works trace the arc of his career, the first from a twentysomething student making bold and boundary-testing harmonic experimentations at the Leipzig Conservatory; the second featuring clear influences of the folk-music for which he would be largely remembered, and third representing a more confident artist during the high point of his career, where truly he enjoyed the “wider horizon” of a more global view and recognition.
From a summer 2019 Heifetz Institute “Stars of Tomorrow” concert, violinist Angela Sin Ying Chan and pianist Miki Aoki explore the “wider horizon” of the final two movements of Grieg’s third sonata, captured in concert at Mary Baldwin University’s Francis Auditorium in Staunton, VA, home base for the Heifetz International Music Institute. Angela is on the verge of her own expanded horizons, as she has been selected (alongside fellow Heifetz alumna Shannon Lee) among the six finalists in the Shanghai Isaac Stern International Violin Competition—one of the most prestigious international competitions in the music world, boasting a cool $100,000 cash prize for the winner. The final competition round will be held in 2022.
