Bach, Stravinsky, Ngwenyama, Schubert

The meditative opening of Bach’s Sonata for Solo Violin in C major is built from a simple dotted-note motive that gradually expands in harmonic complexity. The fugue that follows is a contrapuntal tour de force, its length matched by its technical demands. The melodic Largo offers repose before listeners are plunged into a moto perpetuo finale.

Stravinsky’s Elegy is a five-minute memorial to the founder of the ProArte Quartet. The composer’s only work for viola, the Elegy opens with a chant-like theme, followed by a fugal middle section and reprise of the chant. The work is performed muted throughout, heightening its atmosphere of quiet contemplation.

American violist-composer Nokothula Ngwenyama pays tribute to the American southwest in Sonoran Storm, a tour de force for solo viola that evokes the drama and majesty of the natural world. The work frequently calls on its performer to weave together multiple musical parts by way of chordal playing.

Written with the intimacy of home performances in mind, Schubert’s Six Moments Musicaux offer an emotional depth and range that belie their technical accessibility. These brief works were composed in the last five years of Schubert’s life and not far removed from the spirit of song and dance.

Yura Lee, violin; Dimitri Murrath, viola; Max Levinson, piano