It was living legend Martha Argerich, Renaud Capuçon’s frequent duo partner and Khatia Buniatishvili’s mentor, who played musical matchmaker and brought these two brilliant performers together. Their concerts at Lugano Festival in 2012 were such a resounding success that the friendship stuck. Capuçon has been praised for his “intensely lyrical” tone and “gloriously rich sound” (BBC Music Magazine). His poised, expressive playing provides the ideal counterbalance to the impassioned pianism of 27-year-old Khatia Buniatishvili, the “fiery young star” (The Independent) hailed by Argerich as “a young pianist of extraordinary talent. I was impressed by her exceptional pianistic gift, natural musicality, imagination and her brilliant virtuosity.”

Together, the pair has devised a delectable program of Romantic sonatas for violin and piano – all composed in 1886-87. César Franck’s Sonata in A major is one of the finest in the genre, beloved for its soaring melodies and sensuous, light-filled final movement. “Khatia and I met over Franck’s sonata,” Capuçon recalls. “This is the sonata that sealed our musical partnership, the sheer joy of playing together.”

These two kindred musicians bring out all the stormy passion of Edvard Grieg’s Sonata No. 3 in C minor, relishing the sparkling dance rhythms of the last movement, Allegro animato – Prestissimo. The album concludes with the yearning lyricism of Antonín Dvorák’s Four Romantic Pieces, drawing to a close Capuçon and Buniatishvili’s exploration of a truly remarkable year for violin and piano.