Ballade

With uncompromised interpretation, duo526, the powerful union of violinist Kerry DuWors and pianist Futaba Niekawa, presents BALLADE, their debut on Navona Records, performing violin sonatas by Leoš Janácek, George Enescu, and Edvard Grieg-repertoire rarely performed together. Yet each of the three sonatas introduces themes from European folk tunes and exalted Romanticism. Janácek’s Violin Sonata illustrates a dynamic conversation, each instrument frequently interrupting, restating, and reacting to what the other pronounces. In Sonata No. 3 in C Minor by Grieg, piano and violin often move together in a dance-like fashion, leading one another to the next phrase. Enescu’s Violin Sonata No. 2 weighs chromatic harmonies against controlled and sustained melodies, exploring the tones of loneliness and melancholy. These pieces highlight the faculties of DuWors and Niekawa-the sustained vibrato, the harmonic sensitivity, the rhythmic spontaneity, precision, and much more.

Founded in 2011 while DuWors and Niekawa were attending the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, NY, duo526 has performed throughout the United States and Canada, nurturing their passion for collaboration and duo playing.