Violin Sonata G major

Inspired by Béla Bartók’s violin sonatas, Ravel planned his own sonata for violin and piano in 1922, but at first did not get beyond sketches. Many interruptions ensued and the work was only finished in 1927. He dedicated it to his violinist friend Hélène Jourdan-Morhange. Regarding the sonata’s sparse, thinned out compositional structure and instrumentation, Ravel later emphasized that the sonata proved the tonal incompatibility of the violin and piano.

Yet it still succeeded in winning a permanent place in violin repertoire – not least because of its middle movement inspired by jazz elements and the “blues”. The fingerings in this Henle Urtext edition have been provided by two masters of their instruments: Christian Tetzlaff and Pascal Rogé.