Józef & Henryk Wieniawski: Music for Violin & Piano Liv Migdal & Marian Migdal

• Józef Wieniawski (1837-1912): Sonata for Violin and Piano in D minor, Op. 24 (c. 1866)
• 1 I. Allegro con anima 12:32
• 2 II. Andante religioso 06:21
• 3 III. Scherzo: Allegro molto vivace e giojoso 06:28
• 4 IV. Finale: Allegro appassionato, ma non troppo presto 12:08
• Józef Wieniawski (1837-1912) and Henryk Wieniawski (1835-1880)
• 5 Allegro de sonate, Op. 2 08:12
• 6 Grand Duo Polonais in G Major, Op. 5 15:42
• Total Runtime 01:01:23

Info for Józef & Henryk Wieniawski: Music for Violin & Piano

The reputation of Polish pianist, composer, conductor and educator Józef Wieniawski has proved less robust than that of his famous elder brother, the violinist Henryk Wieniawski, but during his lifetime he was considered one of Europe’s finest musicians.

The brothers performed together extensively for a time, and the virtuoso elements in the violin part of the youthful Allegro de sonate and Grand Duo polonais can be credited to Henryk.

Józef’s Violin Sonata reveals elegant sophistication, expressive depth and jocular playfulness in exploring the full expressive range of both instruments.

„Józef enjoyed a career as a concert pianist, composer and teacher, but today he is known only as the gifted brother of the great Polish violinist, Henryk Wieniawski. In the world of education he was highly influential during his thirty-four years at the Brussels Conservatory, having already spent time teaching at the newly created Moscow Conservatory. It was while he was in Russia that in 1866 he composed his four movement Violin Sonata, a score that clocks-in at around forty minutes, the outer movements substantial and weighty Allegros. Its central movements are a contrasting Andante religioso and a bright and happy scherzo, Jozef’s problem being the familiar one of finding themes that quickly lodge in your memory. Turn the clock back and the brothers toured extensively around Europe together, and had combined in composing the Allegro de sonate, when they were thirteen and eleven respectively, the Grand Duo completed five years later in 1853. They were both very mature works, and rather ironically they both contain ‘catchy’ tunes, their ability as performers showing in the demands they placed on both instruments, the opening of the Allegro de sonate being a violin cadenza of some difficulty. The Grand Duo is a ‘salon’ work where the brothers made use of melodies by the famous Polish composer, Stanisław Moniuszko. The performances come from the Polish-born pianist, Marian Migdal and his daughter, Liv Migdal, the winner of the 2005 International Hindemith Competition held in Berlin. Sadly we note that Marian passed away earlier this year.“ (David Denton, David's Review Corner)

Liv Migdal, violin
Marian Migdal, piano

Liv Migdal
As a soloist, the award-winning musician is on the road with renowned orchestras and conductors around the world. Concert tours take Liv Migdal to numerous European countries, Asia and Israel. She has made guest appearances in major concert halls such as the Laeiszhalle Hamburg, the Taipei Concert Hall, the Beethovenhalle Bonn, the Herkulessaal Munich, the Konzerthaus Dortmund, the Konzerthaus Berlin, the Alte Oper Frankfurt, the Shanghai Concert Hall and the Great Hall of the Mozarteum in Salzburg. Her debut concerts in the Berliner Philharmonie and most recently in the Elbphilharmonie Hamburg also received an enthusiastic response.

Liv Migdal has received excellent reviews from critics and international awards for all her CD recordings to date: her debut CD with sonatas by Beethoven, Debussy and Strauss, followed by a first recording of the late romantic works for violin and piano by the great Polish virtuosos Henryk and Józef Wieniawski with Marian Migdal as piano partner, as well as the 8 Seasons with the Deutsches Kammerorchester Berlin, which was nominated for the International Classical Music Award.

Liv Migdal began her artistic studies at the age of eleven with Christiane Hutcap at the Musikhochschule Rostock, where she graduated with distinction. She continued her studies at the Salzburger Mozarteum in Igor Ozim’s master class and completed her master program with honors. In addition to Mauricio Fuks, Reinhard Goebel is a musical companion.

Liv Migdal has won numerous international music prizes and was honored in 2016 in Austria with the Paul Roczek Music Award for outstanding violin playing. In 2017 she was a scholarship holder of the ECCE Program of the Ministry of Culture and Science of North Rhine-Westphalia with the project “Giving a Voice to Ostracized Composers,” which she initiated.

Highlights of the 2018/19 season include the world premiere of a work dedicated to her for violin and orchestra, an Artist-in-Residence season with the Erzgebirgische Philharmonie, appearances with the Istanbul State Symphony Orchestra and concert tours in Europe, Australia and Asia, where she had already won popular acclaim in 2017 during her major tour of China with the Beethoven Violin Concerto.

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