Alexander Baillie, John Thwaites

Cellist, Alexander (Sandy) Baillie and pianist John Thwaites celebrate their 35-year duo-partnership and Sandy’s 60th Birthday in a showcase concert featuring John Ireland’s dramatic and beautiful Cello Sonata and the two Brahms Cello Sonatas.

A programme of

Johannes Brahms: Sonata for Piano and Cello No.1 in E minor Op.38
John Ireland: Sonata for Cello and Piano in G minor (1923)
Richard Rodney Bennett: Sonata for Cello and Piano (1991)
(First London Performance by its dedicatee)
Johannes Brahms: Sonata for Piano and Cello No.2 in F Op.99

Described by Stephen Pritchard in The Observer as "an outstanding partnership”; Sandy and duo-partner John Thwaites, who is best known for his collaborative work with strings and a founder member of the Primrose Piano Quartet, have recently recorded the Brahms Cello Sonatas and these works form part of their celebratory concert.

"Sandy and I will be the first to release recordings of this repertoire using period pianos”, explained John Thwaites. We include a transcription of the 'Four Serious Songs', and so use three pianos in the Viennese collection of Gert Hecher: an 1860's Rönisch, 1870's Ehrbar and 1880's Streicher. In addition to their historic authenticity, all these pianos make a truly beautiful sound."

Well-known for their championing of British twentieth-century repertoire, which include the Sonatas by Bridge, Ireland, Rubbra, Delius, Ivor Keyes and Rebecca Clarke; their recording of these works on the SOMM label was described by BBC Music Magazine as “…probably the best of the current versions.” The Cello Sonata by John Ireland, a work which also features in the Birthday recital, being described by The Observer as “rewarding and perfectly judged.”

Also featured in the programme is the Sonata for Cello and Piano by Richard Rodney Bennett, being given a first London performance by its dedicatee. The work was commissioned by the Harrogate International Festival and written in New York City in 1991, the composer later inscribing on the cover page of the manuscript that "no-one will ever play this better than A. Baillie." The Sonata is to be recorded for Volume II of ‘Twentieth-Century British Cello Sonatas’ which is due for release shortly on the SOMM label.