# Haydn violin sonatas - a mystery



## kangxi (Jan 24, 2014)

I found a book of easy piano music the other day called Dance Movements from Haydn. It was published by Paterson's Publications around 1930. The music is selected and arranged by J Michael Diack. So far so good. But among the pieces from symphonies etc are 2 movements from a sonata or sonatas for violin and piano. So far as I was aware, Haydn didn't write any violin sonatas, and on combing through the New Grove catalogue I couldn't find any mention of any. Although considering the huge amount of stuff Haydn composed there may have been a small Hoboken section which I could have missed.
Is anybody aware of any Haydn violin sonatas, or of any violin sonatas which may have led J Michael Diack into thinking they were authentic Haydn?


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## Dowd (Jan 15, 2012)

In 2008, Alberto Bologni and Giuseppe Modugno recorded 5 "Sonatas for Violin and Fortepiano: Hob. XVa-XV 31,32". It was a World Premiere recording. From the booklet, "Neither Bologni nor Modugno has any doubts regarding the authenticity of the three Sonatas XVa as Haydn's. These pieces, came to light thanks to a printed edition dating to the early 1800's archived in the Civico Museo Bibliografico in Bologna."

There's a fairly extensive writeup in the booklet which (IMO) treads a line between historical proof and Ripley's Believe It Or Not. I'd be happy to share additional info from the booklet if you'd like to PM me.











kangxi said:


> I found a book of easy piano music the other day called Dance Movements from Haydn. It was published by Paterson's Publications around 1930. The music is selected and arranged by J Michael Diack. So far so good. But among the pieces from symphonies etc are 2 movements from a sonata or sonatas for violin and piano. So far as I was aware, Haydn didn't write any violin sonatas, and on combing through the New Grove catalogue I couldn't find any mention of any. Although considering the huge amount of stuff Haydn composed there may have been a small Hoboken section which I could have missed.
> Is anybody aware of any Haydn violin sonatas, or of any violin sonatas which may have led J Michael Diack into thinking they were authentic Haydn?


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## kangxi (Jan 24, 2014)

Dowd,
Thanks a million! I actually own a Hoboken catalogue, although my rudimentary German allows me limited navigation of the 2 fat volumes. But armed with your Hoboken references I was able to track down the relevant info. 

Hob XV are the piano trios, including trios no 31 & 32. A section at end of XV is the Anhang, and in it are listed various arrangements other Haydn works (by known and unknown composers) for pf trio. So far so good.

Hob XVa is a bit more puzzling. It's labelled "Klavierduos" and appears to be duets for pf & either flute, viola or violin. Most seem to be arrangements of other Haydn works, and mention is made of pf trios 31 & 32. (I'd always assumed 'Klavierduos' were for 1 keyboard 4 hands or 2 keyboards, which is why I didn't find the vn sonatas in the first place.)

So: thanks to you (and Alberto Bologni and Giuseppe Modugno) the mystery is solved: there is no great missing oeuvre of Haydn violin sonatas but there are a few arrangements of other Haydn works for that combination.

Thanks for the offer to pm me further info. I'd accept but I've opted out of pm services. However, I shall add your CD to my 'to buy' list. Have you listened to it? I wouldn't expect the music to be Haydn's most profound but it'll be a nice addition to my library.


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## kangxi (Jan 24, 2014)

Update: I've ordered the CD - thanks for alerting me to it. Also, the name Giuseppe Modugno rang a bell with me: I have a CD he issued together with pianist Alberto Spinelli of Mendelssohn's 4-handed piano music. There are a couple of first world recordings on the disc, except that, well, one of them isn't (see separate thread in this forum).


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## Dowd (Jan 15, 2012)

Excellent! And thanks for the insights into the Hoboken catalogue. I learned something as well!

I quite like the sonatas. As you guessed, they are not profound, but I do appreciate the playful airiness in them. I certainly wouldn't have pegged them for Haydn had I heard them without the composer's name attached to them. I hope you enjoy the booklet info, I found it a bit convoluted with my limited knowledge of the Hoboken catalogue but hopefully you'll fare better! If you get a chance, post your thoughts.


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