Amanda Maier (February 19, 1853 - July 15, 1894) was born in the Swedish town of Landskrona, and was quite an accomplished violinist, cellist, organist, and composer. Her initial studies in piano and violin were with her father, and later studied at the Royal School of Music at Stockholm, and was their first female music graduate.  While she was there, she won numerous awards for her instrumental playing and compositions as well. After graduating, she moved on to the Leipzig Conservatory, to study composition with Carl Reinecke, and violin with Engelbert Rontgen. Brahms and Grieg spoke very highly of her compositions, though she stopped composing after she got married, and not many of her works were published in her lifetime. While in Leipzig, however, she continued winning awards, including one for her Violin Sonata in b minor.

The first movement of this work is titled Allegro, and is very passionate and dark, with a sense of tumultuous unease.

The second movement is titled Andantino, and much like the first movement, passionate writing is abound in this movement. There is a short Allegretto un poco vivace section in the middle in 3/8, creating a small break from the long lyrical lines of the Andantino.

The final movement, Allegro Molto Vivace has a similar dramatic tumultuousness as the first movement, and ends in the triumphant major.

Here are some recordings of this (sadly) lesser known work:

Frank Almond
Elmira Darvarova