Classical - Keith Pascoe/ Brian McNamara

St Barrahane’s, Castletownshend

Pianist Brian McNamara suggested to Keith Pascoe (violin), more than a year ago, that they should perform all of Mozart’s 17 sonatas for piano and violin, combining them with all 10 of Beethoven’s sonatas for the same combination, in a series of seven recitals to be held in Castalia Hall in Co Kilkenny.

On the face of it, the idea was ludicrous — complete cycles of the Beethoven sonatas have been performed by artists such as Mariana Sirbu and Jan Cap, among others, but I have never heard of a project as ambitious as this one. Since then, the project has expanded to 30 recitals around the country, with complete cycles in Dublin and Cork. I was relieved to finally catch up with them when they brought the 33rd Festival of Classical Music in Castletownshend to a close.