The Sonata dates from the same year as A Midsummer Night's Dream Overture, so not too much should be made of its composer's youthfulness, or of the allusions to Beethoven's Sonata, Op. 101 and echoes, in the finale, of Weber. As Schumann wrote in 1835, these show not weak dependence on the 17-year-old composer's part but spiritual affinities. Lydia Artymiw gives a marvellously fluent performance of this impressive work, informed with much intelligence and musical perception, that receives a lifelike recording, the CD having just a shade more immediacy than the excellent LP. Actually, the Introduction and Rondo capriccioso date from two years earlier yet are fully characteristic of Mendelssohn and relate to Op. 16 No. 2, a gossamer scherzo from fairyland. These pieces again are beautifully turned, showing a fine sense of balance and proportion. The outstanding Op. 28 Fantasia, also, is fiery, immaculate, and highly enjoyable.
