Notes from Rose Wollman: I arranged these pieces for my 2022 album Loop: Ligeti’s Inspiration and Legacy.

György Ligeti’s music, despite its modern harmonic language and instrumental approach, is steeped in baroque forms and gestures. His Sonata for Viola Solo is no exception, and my idea with these companion pieces is to help audiences appreciate the familiar aspects of Ligeti’s writing by juxtaposing old works that share some characteristics with each of Ligeti’s movements. I perform these movements interleaved with the sonata, baroque piece first and then the corresponding Ligeti movement. This gives the audience a “translation” and reference for each of Ligeti’s movements that will provide context (and hopefully appreciation and enjoyment) for each movement.

This collection (perhaps without the Bach) is also a lovely stand-alone suite of pieces, and I think a very nice addition of stolen works for the viola repertoire!

(Note: This PDF file is 14 pages.)