Composed in 1888, the Brahms Third Violin Sonata, Op. 108 in D minor, is the most serious of his three sonatas.
In the first movement there are several concentrated motifs, so mysterious in their first appearances, which are put through a huge variety of compositional and emotional transformations.
The concise Adagio that follows shares the same rapt quality that marked the slow movement of the D-minor Piano Concerto; this is a song that manages to express a great deal without any need for words.
The third movement (Un poco presto e con sentimento) is an example of Brahms steadfastly refusing to write a real scherzo when an intermezzo will do. The middle section is more emphatic, but the requested sentiment soon returns us to a lyrical mood reminiscent of the earlier Violin Sonatas. The climax of this work, though, is clearly the finale.
The stormy Presto agitato gallops relentlessly, occasionally yielding to reflective interludes offering welcome but only temporary contrast.
Here are Yuja Wang and Leonidas Kavakos to perform this music for you:
