4 Gems of the Viola Repertoire You Need to Know

When I say viola, I am not referring to my pen name on Vocal or Viola Desmond, I am talking about an instrument in the string family.

Unlike the violin or the cello, the viola was a highly underrated instrument for centuries. Composers would give the viola uninteresting and simplistic parts to play in orchestral and chamber works. Often, the less skilled players who could not handle the violin would be assigned to play the viola parts. 

In the early twentieth century, viola pedagogues Lionel Tertis and William Primrose advocated for the viola to be treated as a legitimate solo instrument. Composers began to take interest in writing solo pieces that showcased the viola's characteristics and also gave the viola a more important role in ensembles. There was also a push to encourage violists to become as technically competent and virtuosic as violinists. Playing the viola no longer meant that you were a failed violinist. 

The long-time misunderstanding of the beautiful instrument led people to write countless jokes about the viola. Most recently, the viola was roasted by Stephen Colbert on The Late Show.

As a violist myself, I've embraced the quirky and unique qualities of this instrument. I developed a thick skin and took all those ridiculous jokes with a grain of salt. Nine times out of ten, these people wished they could play the viola.

Most of our standard repertoire comes from German composer Paul Hindemith. He wrote many viola and piano sonatas, as well as a concerto called Der Schwanendreher. Hindemith was a violist himself and in a similar vein to Tertis and Primrose, he wanted to promote solo performance on the viola.

I have always been fascinated by discovering lesser-known works for the viola. There's something so satisfying about playing an unknown piece on an uncommon instrument. While yes, I wouldn't be here as a professional violist if it weren't for the contributions of composers such as Paul Hindemith, I am constantly searching for those hidden gems of classical music.

Whether you are familiar with classical music or not, I am sure these four pieces will give you a great idea of what the viola is all about and you'll be eager to hear more.

To listen to a YouTube recording of each piece, click on the heading.

1. Aram Khachaturian - Sonata-Song

Armenian composer Aram Khachaturian (1903–1978) was known for his ballet music. Many of his compositions feature Armenian folk melodies. He was also known to have transcribed Russian, Hungarian, Turkish and Eastern European folk songs.

The Sonata-Song for Viola Solo is one of Khachaturian's last works. It was written in 1976, just two years before the composer's death. Around this time, he had also written a solo sonata for the violin and the cello. The Sonata-Song is a relatively unknown work, even among violists.

The piece opens with a rather disjoint figure, jumping across all registers of the viola, avoiding any discernable melody. Later, a fragment of an Armenian folk song appears, but this is interrupted with a disjoint interjection. 

Throughout the whole piece, Khachaturian explores the juxtaposition of the singing folk melodies and non-melodic passages. There are also moments where the viola is portraying these two ideas simultaneously, for example, with the melody on the upper strings and pizzicato in the lower register. The piece follows a loose sonata form, with the opening material returning near the end.

While not an easy piece, it does work very well for the instrument and should definitely be on young violist's radars. Most of the viola's repertoire showcases the dark, melancholic side of the instrument, while this piece has a brighter, more optimistic character. 

For more information on this piece, check out what Milan Milisavljević of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra has to say about it on his YouTube channel.

2. Arnold Bax - Viola Sonata

English composer Arnold Bax (1883-1953) was more known for his orchestral works, but he also made significant contributions to the viola repertoire. Bax was a student at London's Royal Academy of Music while Lionel Tertis was teaching viola there. In this time of promoting the viola's solo presence, Bax became inspired by Tertis' playing and kept it in mind while writing for the viola.

Throughout his young life, Bax was fascinated by Irish folk songs and poetry. In addition to writing music, Bax was a poet and playwright. He wrote several Ireland-inspired plays, short stories and poems under the pen name Dermot O'Byrne. 

Unfortunately, Bax's love for Ireland was tarnished by the Easter Rising in Dublin in 1916. Naturally, he wrote some commemorative poetry to honour those who had died. Some of his works were so evocative that they had been banned and censored. The Irish Civil War followed shortly after.

The Viola Sonata acts as both a tribute to the Celtic wonderland that Bax once knew and a confrontation of the traumatic events that followed. The first and third movements of the sonata are calm and poetic. In contrast, the second movement is a very tumultuous scherzo, reminiscent of folk dancing at the ceilidh.

This is an excellent piece for showcasing the viola in a variety of different characters and timbres.

Click here to read further about Bax and a Naxos recording which includes this sonata.

3. Henri Vieuxtemps - Elegie Op. 30

If you know anything about viola music, you may be wondering why I included this piece. Typically, only high school and undergraduate students learn it, therefore giving it the "little kid piece" reputation.

However, I think more graduate students and young professionals should consider learning or revisiting this piece because it has so many options for musical expression when you're a more mature musician. It's the perfect piece to experiment with different colours and sounds too because it isn't overly difficult.

Belgian composer Henri Vieuxtemps (1820-1881) was known mostly for writing several violin concerti. He was also one of the greatest violin virtuosos of his time and had several notable students, including Eugène Ysaÿe.

In 1873, Vieuxtemps suffered from a stroke that left his right arm paralyzed. He continued to compose, but was no longer able to perform or teach the violin. Toward the end of his life, he began to compose chamber music and solo music for other instruments.

However, Élégie, Op. 30 was composed while Vieuxtemps was still an active violinist. At the time, he was a court musician for Tsar Nicholas I in St. Petersburg, Russia. The Élégie was premiered in 1848 on the same program where Vieuxtemps was performing Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto in e minor.

The Élégie was not well-received; the audience and critics referred to it as “monotonous”. The composition did not gain success until Vieuxtemps included it in his French concert tour in 1853. The piece was published shortly after in 1854. At this time, he also made a version for cello and piano.

The piece opens with a melancholic F minor melody and moves into A-flat major after a cadenza-like passage; a contrast from the opening theme. The F minor theme then returns an octave higher, which leads to a bravura-style coda and a large flourish.

In this early viola composition of Vieuxtemps, one can see that he had great knowledge of the instrument’s deep, rich timbre and expressive qualities.

Click here to read further about Vieuxtemps and a Naxos recording which includes this piece.

4. György Ligeti - Viola Sonata

And now, time for something completely different.

Hungarian-Austrian composer György Ligeti (1923-2006) was known as one of the most influential and innovative avant-garde composers in the late twentieth century.

The Viola Sonata has six movements, loosely following the pattern of a Baroque sonata. Throughout the piece, you will hear elements of Renaissance music, Baroque music, jazz, minimalism, Latin harmonies, and Eastern European folk music.

In his preface, Ligeti mentions that he loved the use of the viola C string in Schubert's String Quartet No. 15 in G major and the second movement of Schumann's Piano Quintet in E-flat major. He remarks how the violin and the viola seem so similar, yet they're worlds apart because of the C string.

This is likely what inspired him to write the first movement of this sonata, Hora lungă, entirely on the C string to establish the unique timbre immediately.

What fascinates me about this piece is how it seamlessly combines centuries-old musical forms with an innovative sound world.

In the first movement, for instance, you will hear microtones. These are indicated in the score by downward arrows, indicating to the player to flatten the pitch slightly, essentially playing the "notes between the notes".

Throughout the piece, there are more chords and double stops than one would typically find in a viola piece, allowing for new possibilities for expression and colour.

The recording linked above has the score on the video so you can follow along with the music and see these musical effects with your own eyes.

I must admit I've never attempted to learn this piece as it is incredibly difficult, but I've always been fascinated by it since the day I discovered it. It's been a long-term project of mine to learn at least one movement.

For further reading, consult the Wikipedia article on this piece, which includes a detailed overview of each individual movement.

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Those are four gems of the viola repertoire that you need to know about, whether you're a musician or not.

Obviously, this is not an exhaustive list and there are many more pieces that I could have included. However, this will give you a good starting point in your musical listening or viola performance journey.

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