Word: sonata
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...Mozart's Sonata No. 15, in B-flat, is pleasant, sunny music, but certainly not so deserving of performance as main of the composer's other works in this genre. As to from the lovely andante, the sonata has few passages of unusual beauty or originality. It is neatly put together, and shows Mozart's keen craftsmanship throughout, but that...
Mandelbaum's Flute Sonata received the outstanding performance of the evening. Suzanne Heckman and accompanist Ann Besser played with warmth and ease. The third movement, a gay vivace, received an especially spirited reading. The music itself is essentially jyrical, without being discursive. The composer's style is contemporary but not needlessly dissonant, and he a voids nearly all of the melodic and harmonic cliches...
John Davison, 1G, wrote his Violin Sonata in an appealing, pastoral style, strongly reminiscent of Vaughan Williams. The first three movements became slightly monotonous because of the similarity of their musical ideas, though this impression may be due to the uniformity of the tempi with which they were performed. In the fourth movement, Mr. Davison departs from his hitherto placid style and attempts, I think successfully, a more elaborate plan. Especially noteworthy are the many long, beautifully constructed melodies which appear in the course of this composition...
...Copland sonatas that opened the program needed neither explanation nor excuse. They are well-constructed, self-consistent works that created favorable impressions even on first hearing. I preferred the Sonata for Violin and Piano (1943) mostly because of its more lyrical themes and greater restraint. Copland's music has a distinctive fresh-air quality that compares favorably with the suffocating works of some of his contemporaries. All that his music requires for maximum effect is a straightforward performance, and Mr. Tucker is above all a straightforward performer...
Ronald Roseman's oboe playing in Hindemith's Sonata for Oboe and Piano was the best in months. His flawless technique and intelligent phrasing made the Sonata sound perhaps even better than it is. Gilda Hoffman's handling of the tricky piano parts was more than adequate...