Composed 1845-6; 29 minutes

If the piano was the center of Chopin’s universe, the cello was a significant satellite. Three of his four chamber works are for cello, including the Cello Sonata. Its many sketches reveal that Chopin worked hard at finding a balance between the two instruments and that he had in mind a sonata where the themes constantly evolve and relate back to one central idea. At its core, this idea is the interval of a falling second, heard in the opening theme. It propels the energetic, mazurka-like Scherzo and haunts the melancholy beauty of the slow movement. It also drives the finale, both its twisting, tarantella-like first theme and its expansion into a syncopated dance theme, first given to the cello. The same musical idea also permeates Schubert’s song cycle Winterreise (Winter Journey) – a seminal work that Chopin is known to have admired – and convincing arguments have been made linking the two works.