This is uncommonly fine sounding Brahms. The recording‚ made in Toronto‚ is full and warm‚ with excellent balance between violin and piano. Alexander Peskanov’s pianism is richly expressive‚ and Ilya Kaler produces a fine‚ appealing tone. Their approach to all three sonatas‚ moreover‚ is thoughtful and discerning. So what more can one ask for? Not a lot‚ perhaps – the melodies of Op 78’s lyrical first movement unfold at a leisurely pace in long‚ beautifully sustained spans‚ and the Adagio of Op 108 is presented with delicacy and restraint‚ sounding wistful as well as serene‚ so that the full­blooded restatement of the main theme creates a stronger effect by contrast. There were some places‚ however‚ where I felt the playing – tending always towards mellifluous‚ songful utterance – missed vital elements in the music. Does not the Presto finale of Op 108 make a more powerful effect if the impetus is kept up in the quieter passages‚ as Pamela Frank and Peter Serkin on Decca do‚ rather than broadening the tempo and releasing the tension‚ as happens here? And‚ in the last movement of Op 100‚ should not the pianissimi sound more tenuous‚ the loud outbursts more explosive‚ as a foil to the grand‚ soaring main theme‚ if the full character of the music is to be revealed? But nobody could accuse Kaler and Peskanov of smoothing out the contrasts and drama in the great opening Allegro of Op 108‚ where their impassioned‚ full­toned climaxes give way to a solemn hush at the start of the coda. It’s certainly a record to enjoy.