This follow-up to Feng’s 2010 collection ‘Solo’ (11/10) has more of a musical thesis running through it than its predecessor’s violinistic barnstormers (and his 2007 disc ‘Hello Mr Paganini’ – 2/08). This is welcome, as it polishes away the commerical sheen that obscured some extraordinary playing, and here Feng gets down to the more substantial business of defining virtuosity through four of the 20th century’s heaviest works for unaccompanied violin. His performances of all of them unveil his artistry and musical thought in a way more redolent of his live performance persona than the evidence we have hitherto had on disc, exposing him for the thoughtful – as well as astonishingly accurate and nimble – musician he is. This is particularly enjoyable in both sonatas by Hindemith: he was more private than either of the other composers with whom he shares this disc, and the intellectual side to his music is quietly honoured in the way Feng is led by the ebb and flow of his harmony, never rooted in one traditional key.

It is worth noting that Feng is out and proud about playing a modern violin on this disc. His 2007 Stefan-Peter Greiner is almost as rare as a Stradivari or Guarneri (Greiner includes the likes of Christian Tetzlaff among his hand-picked clients) and has a sound with almost all the power of the grand Italian master. But it also displays a clean, silvery quality that works beautifully with this repertoire, creating a sound that is oddly easy to identify and which freshens up the atmosphere of these dark pieces no end.