Sonatas for piano & violin opp. 11 & 29
Piano Trio in C major

„This sonata combines pleasurability, interestingness and substance; novel and charming melodies with elegant modulation and exquisite harmony. The sonata’s magnificent style compares favourably to Mozart’s best works of this kind.“ (Review of the Sonata op. 11 in: Zeitung für die elegante Welt, 1807) “Whether or not Wilms had Mozart in mind – he certainly held him in his heart! Without doubt, he has matched the master with this work.“ (Review of Sonata op. 29 in: Allgemeine Musikalische Zeitung, 1813)

The violin sonatas Op. 11 and Op. 29 lay testament to the popularity of Johann Wilhelm Wilms (1772-1847), a composer living and working in Amsterdam, among his contemporaries; it was an appreciation of the highest order since Mozart was already considered an undisputed genius at the beginning of the 19th century. And indeed, both sonatas appear to be stylistically close to the great master. Few composers of Wilms’s era may have had a similarly developed sense for the movement’s harmonic proportions, a keen awareness of structural balance, or a highly developed gift for motivic economy yet formal variety.

The violinist Werner von Schnitzler (b. 1978) performed as a soloist in many European venues such as at the Concertgebouw Amsterdam, the Tonhalle Zurich, the Philharmonie am Gasteig in Munich, the Konzerthaus and Musikverein in Vienna, the Philharmonie Köln, Musikhalle Hamburg, Birmingham Symphony Hall, the Alte Oper Frankfurt and the Berlin Schauspielhaus.