Sonate for Violin Solo

A half century after his death, an air of obscurity still surrounds both the life and work of Nikos Skalkottas, the most significant Greek composer. Sonate für Geige allein was written in the summer of 1925 while Skalkottas studied with Kurt Weill and Phillipp Jarnach, and the sonata seems absolutely typical of the intellectually and musically radical mood of the time. Fresh, spare, mischievous, dissonant, tempermental and with a lively sense of humor, Sonate was clearly influenced by Jarnach as Skalkottas harks back to baroque forms and structures. The second and third movements imitate a minuet and a bourée, while in the closing fugue the young composer demonstrates his ability to mesh two relatively independent melodies together. This autograph text edition contains the composer s own fingerings and bowing indications, and his suggestions provide valuable insight to his musical intentions.