Eugene Ysaÿe
Late Romantic · 1858–1931
Eugène Ysaÿe was the violinist other violinists went to hear. Born in Liège, Belgium, in 1858, he learned the instrument from his father, and by the 1880s he was touring Europe and America while running his own concert series in Brussels, where he championed new French and Belgian music. César Franck wrote his Violin Sonata as a wedding present for him.
Composing came second to playing for most of his life. His main legacy on paper is a set of six sonatas for violin alone, written in the 1920s after hearing Bach's solo violin music convinced him the idea needed a modern answer. Each of the six is dedicated to a younger violinist he admired.
Start with the Violin Sonata no. 3, a single-movement piece dedicated to George Enescu, then work outward through the rest of the six solo sonatas.
17 works in the catalog, across 2 genres. Log what you listen to with Opus, the classical music journal for iPhone.
Chamber
- 6 Sonatas for Violin Solo, op. 27
- Violin Sonata no. 3
- Cello Sonata, op. 40
- Harmonies du soir, op. 31
- Mazurka no. 3, op. 11
- Rève d'enfant, for violin and piano, op. 14
- Sonata for 2 Violins, op. posth
- Sonata for Cello Solo, op. 28
- String Trio, "Le Chimay"
- Variations on Paganini's 'Caprice no. 24', for solo violin
- Violin Sonata in F minor, "Au tombeau d'après la sonate de Pietro Antonio Locatelli"
Orchestral
- Poème élégiaque, for violin and orchestra in D minor, op. 12
- Berceuse in F minor, for voilin and orchestra, op. 20
- Chant d'Hiver in B minor, for violin and orchestra, op. 15
- Les Neiges d'antan, for violin and orchestra, op. 23
- Poem no. 2, for violin and orchestra, op. 13, "Au Rouet"
- Poème de l'amitié for two violins and orchestra, op. 26
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