One of Classical music’s most iconic voices, Beethoven endures today—his lyrical melodies, incisive rhythms, and crisp surprises are as bold and vital now as ever. Yet, for all its familiarity, Beethoven’s music is enigmatic and full of contradictions. This program, featuring two works for violin and piano, shows his contrasts in spirit, as the relatively brief and serenely beautiful “Romance in F” stands opposite the epic “Kreutzer” sonata, a large, tense work of great virtuosity and emotional depth. Paired as a modern foil on this program is American composer Daniel Temkin. His colorful trio “Maksimal” for violin, piano, and percussion reflects and illuminates particular elements of Beethoven’s own sensibility, as short motivic cells, fiery rhythms, poignant melodies, and bold textural shifts coalesce to form large-scale architectures and sound worlds. Heard together, these pieces show emotional depths and a sense of musical organicism that speaks across time, genres, and place.

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Image courtesy of the artists