Piano Concerto in A minor Op. 16 was written in June 1867 and completed during the Griegs’ summer holiday in Denmark in 1868. The concerto was first published in 1872 and was an immediate success. Despite this, Grieg was not entirely satisfied and kept making revisions to the work. The first movement Allegro molto moderato is full of passion and tension. The movement begins with a striking drum roll crescendo and piano solo. The wonderful piano cadenza deals mainly with the ‘march’ like theme and the movement ends as it started, with a brilliant piano solo changing the mood as if the sun had come out from behind the clouds.

The second movement Adagio illustrate Grieg’s romantic feelings and love for his country’s beautiful scenery and national spirit. The piano takes over the melody from the strings and changes the mood to a proud statement. The solo horn underlines the solitude as the piano prepares for the finale. The third movement: Allegro molto moderato e marcato - quasi presto - andante maestoso is without doubt music reminiscent of Norwegian mountain peaks, valleys and misty fjords and the piano climax leads into a beautiful finale of the most majestic proportions.

Jules Conus, violinist and composer, was born in Moscow in 1869 into a family of French musicians who had migrated to Russia at the time of the Napoleonic Wars. He studied at Moscow Conservatory under Taneyev and Arensky. In 1888 he was awarded a Gold Medal at Moscow Conservatory and he taught there until 1895. Besides teaching, he performed as a soloist and as a chamber musician, appearing sometimes in a Trio or other ensemble with Rachmaninov to play the latter's compositions. Rachmaninov dedicated his two pieces Op. 6 for violin and piano to Jules and the two men remained close friends throughout their lives. Jules Conus composed the Violin Concerto for his own use and was the soloist in its premiere performance in Moscow in 1898. Fritz Kreisler played the concerto at its London premiere in 1904, but it was really Jascha Heifetz who brought the work to the public’s attention. He made it part of his repertoire for worldwide concert appearances and played it on several occasions in Carnegie Hall.

Concerto for Violin in E minor (Galamian) has an unusual form. It has three movements played without pause: Allegro molto, Adagio, and Allegro subito. A cadenza occurs between the latter two. Essentially, it is in one movement because the first movement is interrupted in the middle by the very beautiful second movement, then resumes in the recapitulation. It was premiered by a young Russian man living in the Conus home. Conus' daughter was the pianist at the premier. The violinist was a promising teacher at the Russian Conservatoire in Paris by the name of Ivan Galamian.

Albert Markov. Taiwanese Improvisation and Formosa Capriccio (Solo Violin) is no. IV and V in Markov’s composition "Formosa" Suite for Violin and Orchestra. World renowned violinist, composer and teacher, Markov was born in Russia in 1933 and studied at Kharkov and Moscow conservatories under Lechinsky and Yankelevich. After winning the Gold Medal in the Queen Elizabeth Competition in Brussels, he toured extensively performing worldwide. Albert Markov immigrated to the United States from Russia in 1975 and made his sensational debut with the Houston Symphony in May, 1976, prompting a New York Times reviewer to write: "The audience roared approval, coming to its feet for three standing ovations, Mr. Markov wowed them with dazzling pyrotechnics."

After almost 20 years of absence from the Russian concert stage, Mr. Markov entered the music scene again in Moscow in May, 1994. His recent works are the Violin Concertos, “Formosa” Suite for Violin and Orchestra and the Symphony "Kinnor David" premiered in Moscow. Albert Markov is the only concert violinist of the 20th century who has created major compositions performed internationally and recorded commercially. He presently teaches at the Manhattan School of Music.