Sonatas for Violin & Piano David Abel & Julie Steinberg

• Johannes Brahms (1833-1897): Sonata No. 1 in G major, Op. 78
• 1I. Vivace ma non troppo10:42
• 2II. Adagio08:41
• 3III. Allegro molto moderato08:46
• Claude Debussy (1862-1918): Sonata for Violin and Piano (1917)
• 4I. Allegro vivo04:24
• 5II. Intermede: Fantastique et leger03:57
• 6III. Finale04:21
• Béla Bartók (1881-1945): Rumanian Folk Dances (1915)
• 7Roman nepi tancok (Romanian Folk Dances), BB 68 (arr. for violin and piano)05:29
• Total Runtime46:20

Info for Sonatas for Violin & Piano

David Abel, violin. Julie Steinberg, piano. Perhaps the most transcendent of David Wilson's brilliant recordings, this remarkable album of solo violin accompanied by piano comes as close to putting the two performers in the listening room as any ever made, writes The Absolute Sound, of Sonatas for Violin & Piano.

'The duo performs these works as if they are one.' (The Absolute Sound)

'This is perhaps the most exquisitely natural recording ever made. All in all, this Wilson record is a triumph of the analog recording art.' (International Audio Review)

David Abel, violin
Julie Steinberg, piano

Recorded by David A. Wilson
Mastering by Bruce Leek, Wilson Audiophile Master Lab
Produced by David A. Wilson and Sheryl Lee Wilson

Recorded on Wilson's Ultramaster Recorder, built by John Curl, and using a spaced pair of Schoeps microphones driving vaccum tube electronics, the recording has a close perspective that heightens transparency and engagement as well as wonderfully capturing the beautiful tonality of Abel's Guarnerius violin and Steinberg's Hamburg Steinway without exaggering their size.

David Abel’s
musical activities span a wide range, including chamber music, solo recitals, orchestra appearances and teaching violin and chamber music, and he is noted as one of the finest violinists dedicated to contemporary music. Abel made his orchestral debut at the age of fourteen with the San Francisco Symphony and has appeared with major orchestras throughout the United States. He was a winner of the Leventritt International Violin Competition in 1964 and toured Europe under the auspices of the Martha Baird Rockefeller Foundation. In 1997, Abel made his first appearance in an electronic music context with his performance in Dresher’s Violin Concerto, one of two works composed for him and the Ensemble Electro-Acoustic Band.

Abel has been a participant in the Chamber Music West Festival in San Francisco, a member of the Crown Chamber Players at the University of California at Santa Cruz and has appeared at the Carmel Bach Festival, the Cabrillo Music Festival, the Library of Congress Summer Chamber Music Festival in Washington, DC, the Mozart Festival in San Luis Obispo and the Mid-Summer Mozart Festival in San Francisco

Abel’s current recordings include: works by Lou Harrison, John Cage, Henry Cowell, Somei Satoh, Paul Dresher, Morton Feldman (viola) and Peter Garland on New Albion Records; Debussy, Satoh, Bartok, Brahms, Beethoven, Enescu and Dvorak for Wilson Audio; with Phil Aaberg on Windham Hill; viola in Elegy for Jean Genet by John Zorn on Eva Records (Japan); and live performances of the Beethoven, Berg, Brahms and Prokofiev No. 1 violin concertos on Three Treasure Recordings

Along with pianist Julie Steinberg, Abel frequently appear in duo recitals, and together they have recorded two sonata programs on Wilson Audio. Joined by percussionist William Winant, they established the Abel-Steinberg-Winant Trio, which is dedicated to the performance of music from the Americas and the Pacific Rim. The Trio has received critical acclaim throughout the United States for their fine performances and unique programming, and for their recordings of Lou Harrison’s music on New Albion Records.

Julie Steinberg
performs regularly as a soloist and chamber musician. An active proponent of new music, her performances of a diverse repertory, that includes music by Olivier Messiaen, Lou Harrison, John Cage, Frederic Rzewski, Henry Cowell and John Zorn have received critical acclaim. Joined by violinist David Abel and percussionist William Winant, she is a member of the Abel-Steinberg-Winant Trio, a virtuoso ensemble specializing in new music from the Americas and Pacific Rim. They have commissioned over twenty-five works and they have recordings on both CRI and New Albion. At the Library of Congress, David Abel and Julie Steinberg have premiered works commissioned through the McKim Fund by Ernst Bacon, John Harbison, Steve Mackey and Paul Dresher. She is also pianist with the San Francisco Contemporary Music Players with whom she appears regularly and has recently performed works by Luciano Berio, Gerard Grisey, Phillipe Hurel and Phillipe Leroux. Since l980, Ms. Steinberg has appeared many times with the San Francisco Symphony, including the world premiere performances of John Adams’ “Grand Pianola Music” and in April,2000 she was a soloist in Arvo Part’s “Tabula Rasa.” Since l996, she has appeared at Michael Tilson Thomas’ Mavericks concerts, most recently performing the music of George Antheil. Ms. Steinberg has appeared at New Music America, the Ravinia Festival, Japan Interlink, Berlin Inventionen, Lincoln Center Outdoors,and the Salzburg Festival. In Fall, 2002, she performed in Moscow and St. Petersburg with the Paul Dresher Ensemble. Other performances include “Le Sacre du printemps” with the Paul Taylor Dance Company in San Francisco, Seattle, and Paris, and a highly praised solo recital on the Bay Area Pianists series. As an assisting artist, she has performed in master classes with Jean-Pierre Rampal and Mstislav Rostropovich. Julie Steinberg holds a Doctor of Musical Arts from Stanford University, has taught at Sonoma State University, Sacramento State University, Mills College and is currently on the faculty of the University of California, Berkeley.

Booklet for Sonatas for Violin & Piano