Zoltán Gárdonyi

2nd Sonata

Zoltán Gárdonyi (1906-1986), a student of Kodály and Hindemith, composed his 2nd sonata for violin and piano in 1937. In 1943, the sonata was performed in Budapest, at the Music Academy, and after the concert, music historian Dénes Bartha published a very appreciative review of the piece in the columns of Pester Lloyd. The article reveals that the sonata then consisted of only three movements (Allegro moderato - Allegro - Allegro con brio), and Bartha's only suggestion was to insert a slow movement that Gárdonyi later fulfilled. The mature masterpiece, whose instrumental yet virtuosic musical material can also be seen in the world of Hungarian folk songs, is now being published for the first time.