Czech Chamber Music Society • Janine Jansen

During the first decades of existence of the Czech Chamber Music Society, the violin sonatas of Ludwig van Beethoven (1770–1827) appeared sporadically on the society’s concert programmes, and even then, only certain ones were selected, led by the famed Kreutzer Sonata, Op. 47, along with the Violin Sonata in C minor, Op. 30, No. 2. The only exception was an “Evening of Sonatas” on 24 February 1912, when two of Beethoven’s sonatas from his Opus 12 were performed by the violin virtuoso František Ondříček and the pianist Frederic Lamond. Beethoven wrote a total of ten violin sonatas, the last of which, the Violin Sonata in G major, Op. 96, was written in 1812 after a rather long hiatus.

The preserved sketches for the Three Violin Sonatas, Op. 12, are dated 1797 and 1798. By then, having spent five years in Vienna, Beethoven had settled into life in the Austrian capital and had won popularity and acknowledgement as a pianist and improviser. He was taking lessons on various aspects of composition under such teachers as Joseph Haydn and Antonio Salieri, and he was also moving in the higher circles of society—all while composing. The Three Violin Sonatas, Op. 12 (the original title was Tre Sonate per il Clavicembalo o Forte-Piano con un Violino), i.e. the First Violin Sonata in D major, the Second in A major, and the Third in E flat major, were issued in print by the Viennese publisher Artaria in January 1799, relatively soon after they had been composed and premiered. Following the example of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Beethoven retained the usual three-movement layout in these sonatas, with a fast first movement in sonata form, a slow middle movement, and a concluding rondo, but he went further in making the piano and violin equals. “There is no denying that Herr van Beethoven follows his own path”, wrote a critic for the Allgemeine musikalische Zeitung, “but what a strange, arduous path! Learned, learned, and ever more learned—and no nature, no song! Indeed, if one considers it closely, there is only a mass of learning here, without good method; an obstinacy that arouses little interest; a striving for unusual modulations, a distaste for ordinary connections, an accumulation of difficulty upon difficulty, until one loses all patience and pleasure.” The critic was absolutely wrong, of course.

The Violin Sonata No. 3 in E flat major begins with an energetically virtuosic Allegro con spirito, followed by a slow Adagio con molta espressione in a solemn, lyrical, Romantic vein. The lively finale (Allegro molto) shows Beethoven once again as a master of counterpoint, brimming with temperament. A famous name is connected with the Violin Sonata in E flat major as well as with Opus 12 as a whole: its dedicatee Antonio Salieri. The premiere apparently took place at a concert of the singer Josepha Duschek in March 1798, when Beethoven appeared as the pianist alongside the violinist Ignaz Schuppanzigh.

The period immediately following the end of the First World War saw an influx of music by French composers into the programmes of the Czech Chamber Music Society and the Czech Philharmonic. The young Czechoslovak state’s pronounced pro-French diplomacy was also reflected in the cultural sphere: there were performances of music of César Franck, Hector Berlioz, Claude Debussy, Albert Roussel, and other French composers. Performances of the Pelléas et Mélisande by Claude Debussy (1862–1918) on the stage of the National Theatre in 1921 or of his cantata L’enfant prodigue by the Czech Philharmonic in 1919 were major events.

Claude Debussy did not live to see the end of the war; he died in the spring of 1918. The premiere of the Violin Sonata in G minor at Paris’s Salle Gaveau on 5 May 1917, where Debussy performed the work alongside violinist Gaston Poulet at a benefit concert for soldiers, was his final public appearance. This makes the composition a kind of “swan song” for Debussy, at least in the eyes of later interpreters of his music. Back in 1915, Debussy had decided to compose a cycle of six instrumental sonatas that would draw on the old French tradition of pre-Classical music, represented, for example, by François Couperin and Jean-Philippe Rameau. On the other hand, in view of the political situation in war-torn Europe, he sought to distance himself from Austro-German models. Of the originally intended cycle, only three sonatas were ultimately realised: the Cello Sonata, the Sonata for Flute, Viola, and Harp, and third in the series, the Violin Sonata, which was originally to have called for English horn as well. It is interesting to note how Debussy, who was exaggeratedly self-critical, rated his Violin Sonata not long after its premiere, claiming that he had only finished it under pressure from his publisher, and that it would be “interesting as an example of what an ailing man is capable of writing in wartime”.

It is a highly concentrated work, meticulous in the nuances of its notation, resulting in a fresh and refined sound, with a balanced dialogue between piano and violin. It would not be Debussy if he did not also draw inspiration from the folk music of other nations—in the first movement (Allegro vivo), we encounter Spanish colour, while the second (Intermède. Fantasque et léger) and third (Finale. Très animé) movements evoke Gypsy music. The composer described the final movement as “a simple game based on a theme that winds into itself like a snake biting its own tail.” Debussy’s last completed opus is elegant, dreamy at times and exuberantly joyful at others. It is a fitting conclusion to his relatively small output of chamber music.

The first performers of the Violin Sonata in A major by César Franck (1822–1890) at concerts of the Czech Chamber Music Society in 1903 were Karel Hoffmann, first violin of the Bohemian Quartet, and pianist Karel Hoffmeister. At the time, Hoffmann was also enjoying successes as a soloist. He also excelled in violin sonatas, for example in his successful performance of Grieg’s Sonata in C minor in Vienna, where he played the work with Grieg himself, to the composer’s complete satisfaction. Moreover, Franck’s music was already familiar to the Bohemian Quartet, which had his important and pioneering chamber works in its repertoire: the Piano Quintet in F minor and the String Quartet in D major. The Sonata in A major was not unanimously admired by the critics. Some faulted it for emotional coolness and a lack of immediacy—criticisms that, from today’s perspective, are almost incomprehensible.

César Franck can be counted among the French composers, but with a small reservation: he was born in Liège, Belgium, and his mother was German. For a long time, Parisian society accepted him “only” as an outstanding organist, improviser, composer of sacred music, and professor at the Conservatoire, where he taught a number of talented pupils, including d’Indy, Chausson, Vierne, Duparc, Dukas, and others. Only as he approached old age did he win recognition as a composer of orchestral music, operas, or oratorios and acceptance from both the critics and the wider listening audience. Towards the end of his life, he also composed the four-movement Violin Sonata in A major, written in 1886 as a wedding gift for his pupil and friend Eugène Ysaÿe. Vincent d’Indy remembered its first public performance (Brussels, 1886) as a strange and undoubtedly impressive experience, when the violinist Eugène Ysaÿe and the pianist Marie-Léontine Bordes-Pène played most of the work in the dark because of an error on the part of the concert organiser. Although the sonata got off to a difficult start on the concert stage, its warmth and compositional maturity soon made it one of the most popular violin sonatas ever written.

The sonata’s lasting popularity rests on, among other things, the natural combination of classical form, Late-Romantic harmony, melodious themes, and the composerʼs contrapuntal skill. The main theme of the first movement (Allegretto ben moderato), in the character of a lullaby, runs through the whole cycle of movements in subtle reminiscences. The beginning of the sonata was originally supposed to have been slower, but Ysaÿe’s interpretation convinced Franck that a quicker tempo would help the opening movement succeed. The second movement (Allegro) is highly expressive and passionate, then the third movement (Recitativo-Fantasia. Ben moderato) presents a dialogue, alternating lyrical and dramatic passages. The concluding Allegretto poco mosso captivates listeners with its lyrical melody and canonic imitation between the two fully equal instruments.

Born to a musical family in the Netherlands, she was introduced to music at an early age by her parents who were professional musicians. She sang in a church choir, and at the age of six she began playing the violin under the tutelage of the famed pedagogue Coosje Wijzenbeek. She was then able to make music with her father and her brothers. She witnessed rehearsals of early music ensembles, and she was herself playing with a Baroque bow at one time, but ultimately she decided to go down the “traditional” path and to honour historically informed interpretation in a different way, for example by her phrasing. She studied under Philipp Hirschhorn and Boris Belkin, and after her debut at Amsterdam’s famed Concertgebouw, she launched her international career. In 2003 she began recording for the Decca Classics label, winning acclaim for her recording of Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, made with a chamber ensemble including her father and brother.

Today, she is collaborating regularly with the world’s top orchestras like the Berlin Philharmonic, the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, the London Symphony Orchestra, the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, and the New York Philharmonic. As the Artist-in-Residence of the Berlin Philharmonic for the 2025/2026 season, she has appeared with Kirill Petrenko and Sir Simon Rattle as well as on chamber music programmes.

Artistic partnerships in chamber music are important to Janine Jansen—she works closely with the pianists Denis Kozhukhin and Suwook Kim, and she plays in an established trio with Martha Argerich and Mischa Maisky. In 2003 she established the International Chamber Music Festival Utrecht, which has continued for more than 20 seasons. Since November 2023, she has been the professor of violin at the prestigious academy in Kronberg. With Sir Antonio Pappano at the piano, she recorded an album titled 12 Stradivari, selecting compositions for the twelve rare violins to bring out the unique voice of each instrument. This meant that Kreisler’s Liebesleid, for example, could be played on a violin that once belonged to the composer himself. To mark the 200th anniversary of Beethoven’s death, Janine Jansen is curating a Beethoven festival at the Concertgebouw, at which she will perform all of his violin sonatas.

She has been collaborating with the Czech Philharmonic since 2007, when she made her debut with the orchestra in Heidelberg, Kiel, and Hamburg. In 2016 she played Bruch’s First Violin Concerto in Prague with Semyon Bychkov, and at the Velvet Revolution Concert in November 2023, she performed Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto in E minor under the baton of Sir Antonio Pappano. Her appointment as Artist-in-Residence for the 2026/2027 season will mark another chapter in this long-standing partnership.

Janine Jansen plays the “Shumsky-Rode” violin made by Antonio Stradivari in 1715.

For the young French pianist Alexandre Kantorow, the path to becoming one of the world’s leading pianists began with his participation in the International Tchaikovsky Competition, where, in 2019 at the age of 22, he won the Gold Medal along with the Grand Prix—an award that had been presented only three times in the competition’s history. He also became the first French winner of this competition. He received further recognition in 2024 when he was awarded the esteemed Gilmore Artist Award. Since then, he has been a highly sought-after artist and can be heard in the world’s most prestigious concert halls, both in recitals and with many renowned orchestras and conductors. He also gained widespread public recognition for his performance of Ravel’s Jeux d’eau at the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games in Paris in July 2024.

In the 2025/2026 season, he undertook numerous tours—through Japan with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra under the baton of Klaus Mäkelä, across Europe with the Filarmonica della Scala under Riccardo Chailly and the London Philharmonic Orchestra led by Paavo Järvi, through Asia with the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France and conductor Jaap van Zweden, and in the United States with the Philharmonia Orchestra and Marin Alsop, including a performance at Carnegie Hall. He also made his debut with the San Francisco Symphony and appeared with the Rotterdam Philharmonic and the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra. His other musical projects this season include a collaboration with Swedish composer Anders Hillborg, who wrote the piano concerto The Kalamazoo Flow for him.

In the realm of chamber music, he enjoys performing with and regularly collaborates with Janine Jansen, as well as Renaud and Gautier Capuçon and baritone Matthias Goerne. Together with Bulgarian violinist Liya Petrova and French cellist Aurélien Pascal, he serves as artistic director of the La Musikfest and Rencontres Musicales de Nîmes festivals, as well as the Pianopolis festival in Angers.

Alexandre Kantorow records exclusively for BIS Records. His recordings have received widespread critical acclaim worldwide; in 2025, he won a Gramophone Award for his latest album featuring works by Brahms and Schubert. In 2024, the French president awarded him the title of Chevalier of the National Order of Merit; he had previously received the title of Chevalier of the Order of Arts and Letters from the Minister of Culture.

In the summer of 2026, he gained his first teaching experience as a lecturer at the French Connection Academy, which focused primarily on cultural exchange between young French and Danish pianists and string players. With the prize money he has won in prestigious competitions, he would like to one day establish a music studio in Paris where artists could practice and gather.

Alexandre Kantorow was born into a musical family—both his parents are violinists, and his father, Jean-Jacques Kantorow, is also a conductor. He began playing the piano at the age of five and subsequently studied in Paris with Pierre-Alain Volondat, Igor Lazko, Frank Braley, and Rena Shereshevskaya. In one of his interviews, he mentioned that it doesn’t matter how prestigious the school one attends is; rather, the teacher’s personality and collaboration with them are absolutely key and decisive for further musical development.