If your computer's sound system is working you should be hearing a commercially recorded excerpt.
Sonata in A Major, Op. 47, for Violin & Piano ("Kreutzer")
by Ludwig van Beethoven
Melissa Barrett, violin
Jean Shamo, piano
Beethoven broke the classical mold with his “Kreutzer” Sonata. Thus far he had worked to refine the earlier Classical style of Haydn and Mozart. But now at age 33 he was ready to explore new musical territory. The first convention to go was the genteel relationship of violin to piano, where keyboard had predominated. The Kreutzer Sonata, by way of contrast, begins with unaccompanied violin and thereafter presents the two instruments in a mix of complex and thrilling roles. Deemed unplayable by its dedicatee, Rudolph Kreutzer, the sonata was ultimately premiered in 1803 by Beethoven himself at the piano, and a young virtuoso, George Bridgetower, dubbed “The African Prince” by an adoring Viennese public. From first-hand accounts we learn the concert began at 8:00 am one Sunday morning, required the violinist to peer over Beethoven's shoulder at a just-completed revision, included a few bars of improvisation, and drew such accolades that portions of it had to be repeated. Would that today's performances should be so free-wheeling!
This program concludes our 10th season! It all started in January, 1998 with an informal at St. Andrew By-the-Sea Methodist Church. Encouraged by the warm reception, we then inaugurated a series at the Hilton Head Public Library. And at the suggestion of friends, we began to repeat our performances in homes for small, invited audiences.
These past 10 years we have engaged 28 area musicians to prepare 46 programs, which were then performed in 140 concerts, thus making excellent use of 6 Hilton Head public venues, 12 private homes .. requiring our Steinway baby grand to be transported on 38 round trips with nary a scratch! 
What does our future hold? Well, we are thrilled to have been invited to perform at All Saints Episcopal Church, and we expect to continue there next season on Monday evenings. Likewise, Sunday afternoon and Tuesday evening house concerts are comfortably situated, although occasionally we would benefit from an additional placeIsland or even off-Island home with a nice piano. How about a Bluffton series on Sunday evenings? Our musicians are keen on the idea, but it turns out that suitable public venues - churches and the like - are not so plentiful as one might imagine. If a location occurs to you, we'd love to hear about it.
We are so grateful that the ensemble is supported by local businesses, by grants to 501(c)3 arts organizations like ours, and by an incredibly generous core group of patrons. But most of all CMHH thrives on your attendance and appreciation.