Album DescriptionIn a manner typical of his time, in his early years, Danish composer and violinist Niels Wilhelm Gade (1817-1890) was fascinated by fairy tales, legends, water motifs, mermaids, and nymphs, which found expression in his works. Gade, who was a friend of Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy as well as Robert & Clara Schumann, wrote three violin sonatas. Violinist Thomas Albertus Irnberger and pianist Edoardo Torbianelli perform these works on instruments that were already being played at the time the works were composed; the pianist, for instance, plays a fortepiano built by Schweighofer in 1846. The SACD also includes Robert Schumann's piano piece "Nordic Song," which is dedicated to Gade.