Spring Concert: Emma Roijackers & Koenraad Spijker

We open the concert with Schubert's sonatina in D, a piece that perfectly suits the character of spring.

This is followed by Ravel's sonata. In the middle movement of this piece, ‘Blues,’ he expressed his fascination with jazz; he wanted the piano's opening chords to sound like the plucking of metal strings, while the violin is free to indulge in gliding, plaintive movements. Ravel wrote the piece in 1920s Paris, after meetings at the Cotton Club in New York with Gershwin and Beiderbecke.

Mathilde Wantenaar is a Dutch composer known for her refined and accessible composition style, often characterized by a mix of traditional and modern elements. Her work ‘Drie Sprookjes for violin and piano’ is a charming and imaginative piece that takes the listener into a world of imagination and stories. Written in 2017, it consists of three movements, each evoking a fairytale scene, with expressive melodies and changing moods.
Prokofiev wrote this sonata in a soft, flowing classical style. Originally conceived as a flute sonata, Prokofiev reworked the piece in 1943-1944, working closely with legendary violinist David Oistrakh to adapt the solo part. It was not just a simple transposition; technical, ‘violin-specific’ passages (such as double stops) were added to make the most of the instrument.