Sonata for Violoncello and Piano

Description

Leoš Janáček’s only completed work for violoncello and piano is the “Fairy Tale” (BA09509). The arrangement of his violin sonata for violoncello provides cellists with another work by this composer – a valuable addition to the concert repertoire for this instrument. The arrangement was made by renowned Czech cellist Jiří Bárta, who recorded the version for the first time together with pianist Terezie Fialová (label Animal Music, 2024).

Bárta approached the arrangement with extraordinary sensitivity to Janáček’s original. The violin part remains largely unchanged, adapted only to accommodate the technical possibilities and timbre of the cello; in some passages, the cello even plays in the same register as the violin. For a particularly challenging passage in the fourth movement, the arranger offers an ossia alternative. The piano part is identical to the original, except for an octave transposition.

The musical text is based on the “Complete Critical Edition of the Works of Leoš Janáček”, E/1-2.