Johannes Brahms's Violin Sonata No. 3 in D minor, Op. 108 is the last of his violin sonatas, composed between 1886 and 1888. Unlike the two previous violin sonatas, it is in four movements (the others are in three movements). The sonata is dedicated to Brahms' friend and colleague Hans von Bülow, and was premiered in Budapest in 1888 with Jenő Hubay on violin and the composer at the piano.
Structure
The sonata consists of four movements:
First movement
The first movement is in traditional sonata-allegro form. The first subject, a long, lyrical cantabile line in D minor, is stated sotto voce by the violin with the piano providing a simple accompaniment; off-beats in the right hand provide a quietly agitated character. Immediately after the violin's closing cadence ends the first statement of the first subject, the subject is taken up by the piano, subito forte and with a virtuosic, heroic character; now it is the violin's turn to provide an accompaniment, again in syncopated rhythm. The second subject, a romantic, expressive melody in F major, is then stated by the piano alone, and repeated by the violin with a simple arpeggiated piano accompaniment. Next comes the development section: the violin plays a variant of the first subject elaborated with bariolage bowing, while the piano again provides the accompaniment in the right hand. Of particular interest in this section is the pedal point on the dominant (A) which the pianist sustains in the left hand for the entire duration of the development section. The recapitulation begins with the violin restating the first subject as in the beginning but an octave lower, the piano plays an elaborated version of the original accompanying figure. After the final cadence of the subject, three sudden unison chords announce, subito forte, an unexpected direct modulation into F minor. In the ensuing section, of virtuosic and symphonic character, violin and piano toss back and forth fragments of the original theme. After a direct modulation back to D minor, the recapitulation resumes its course, and then the second subject is restated in D major. Once more back into D minor and the first subject makes one more appearance in the violin, in the original octave, accompanied by the original figure in the piano. There is a brief sotto voce return to the elaborated material of the development section which then passes through a series of modulations. One final sostenuto statement of the first subject across three octaves leads to a cadence in D major, which leads directly into the second movement.
Second movement
The second movement, in D major, is a gentle and lyrical cavatina for the violin, with the piano reduced to the role of accompanist throughout. The character is romantic and nostalgic, with the meter creating a slow waltz-like rhythm. The melody is stated espressivo by the violin in the mid-lower register and proceeds in a calm, introspective character until a sudden two-measure modulation and crescendo lead to an impassioned climax, played in double stop thirds by the violin. Following a brief interlude the melody is stated again an octave higher and with a somewhat less restrained character—it bears the characteristic Brahmsian marking poco forte (literally "a bit loud".) This time the modulation takes a different turn and the climactic theme is stated a fourth higher than before, in C Lydian dominant. As the melodic line descends and arrives back in D major, rather than playing a simple cadence the violin suddenly takes off on a rhapsodic, improvisatory arpeggiation through D major and finally reaches the triumphant third statement of the climactic theme, a third above its previous appearance and this time still in the home key of D major. A brief echo of the opening theme then leads to a final, subdued cadence.