Tasmin Little has decided to showcase works by Ottorino Respighi\nand Richard Strauss in her latest recital disc for Chandos. She is\njoined by the well-respected Australian pianist Piers Lane.

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Respighi is best known for his orchestral music, and Richard\nStrauss for both his orchestral music and operas, and therefore\ntheir chamber music has tended to take a back seat, however\nunfairly. On this disc we explore a few such neglected works, all\nof which display the full range of emotion, drama, harmonic\nexploration, and technical brilliance that characterised\nromanticism at its height.

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Respighi wrote his Violin Sonata at the peak of his creative\npowers. Full-blooded and romantic, it explores both Italian\nlyricism and powerful dramatic gestures, and as such provides both\ninstrumentalists with a virtuoso workout. The composer’s Sei pezzi\n(Six Pieces) for violin and piano inhabit the very different world\nof intimate salon music. Tasmin Little and Piers Lane have chosen\nthree of the six pieces for this disc. No. 2, Melodia, is the only\none originally intended for violin and piano, a brief, but lovely\nsong without words. No. 4, Valse caressante, was written first for\npiano solo and, with its lolloping melodic lilt, is appropriately\ntitled. Finally, No.5, Serenata, is based on material from\nRespighi’s first opera, Re Enzo, composed in 1904 – 05.

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The Violin Sonata of Richard Strauss represents a crossroads in\nhis creative journey. On the one hand, the language evokes the\nrigour and definition of Strauss as we know him. On the other, the\nsonata is an abstract work, not far removed from the dramatic\nsound-pictures and high romanticism so characteristic of the works\nof Liszt and Wagner.

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Tasmin Little enjoys a flourishing career that has taken her to\nevery continent and major orchestra around the world. She continues\nto champion seldom-performed repertoire, and her playing helped\nsecure the Critics’ Choice Award at the 2011 Classic BRIT Awards\nfor the Chandos recording of Elgar’s Violin Concerto, with\nalternative cadenza, and rarely heard Polonia. In great demand as a\nchamber musician, Piers Lane has given sold-out recitals at the\nWigmore Hall, London and the opening recital at the new Melbourne\nRecital Centre.

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